Benjamin Mendy, acquitted of sexual charges, will continue his career at Lorient

Former Manchester City defender Benjamin Mendy, who was cleared of sexual charges, plans to restart his career in France. Leaving Manchester City, where his contract expired, Mendy signed a two-year deal with Lorient, one of the Ligue 1 teams.

The jury found Mendy not guilty after he was retried at Chester Court last week on one count of rape and attempted rape.

The 28-year-old footballer was acquitted of six counts of rape and one count of sexual assault against four women in an initial hearing that lasted four months, but was retried on two separate charges.

Mendy couldn’t hold back tears in the courtroom after she was acquitted of all charges last week. Her lawyer, Eleanor Laws KC, said the left-back’s career in English football was “over”, and Mendy now signed a contract with Lorient midfielder last season.

HAS NOT RECEIVED A SALARY SINCE 2021

Earning around £100,000 a week for the Premier League champions, Mendy was stripped of his salary after being arrested in September 2021. He likely accepted a significant pay cut to restart his career on France’s west coast.

Mendy, a player for the 2018 World Cup-winning France national team, made 75 appearances for City in six seasons. After the verdicts were announced, several professionals including Memphis Depay and Vinicius Junior offered their support on social media last week.

Benjamin Mendy signed two years with FC Lorient.

The statement https://t.co/upslF01fWp pic.twitter.com/KzuQSLVD4f

– FC LORIENTE (@FCLoriente) July 19, 2023

MAY RETURN TO ENGLAND FOR A MATCH

Mendy believes he can perform at the highest level and could return to English soil next month if Lorient travels to England for a pre-season friendly against Bournemouth.

“2018 world champion Benjamin Mendy is a four-time Premier League winner with Manchester City and French Ligue 1 champion with Monaco,” Lorient said in a statement. For the new season, Lorient joins the team to strengthen its squad. ‘Welcome Benjamin’ were used.

THE ONLY COMMENT WAS ‘ALHAMDULILLAH’

Mendy refused to comment outside of court after he was acquitted last week, simply saying ‘Alhamdulillah’ which means ‘Praise be to Allah’.

Mendy, who was cleared of rape charges, was seen attending a local football match in Manchester two days later and wearing his former team’s jerseys and shaking hands with local youths at the Powerleague headquarters.

Pep Guardiola and Benjamin Mendy.

The former Premier League star arrived unannounced at the sports complex in Ardwick on Sunday, and photos were shared on Twitter of him laughing and beaming as he interacted with young local fans. He was also seen in a series of videos on TikTok taking selfies with fan players in the club’s dressing room.

NOT IN THE FIELD SINCE AUGUST 2021

Mendy made 75 appearances for City from 2017 until his last game in August 2021, winning three Premier League titles and two League Cups.

The player has previously played in Monaco, Marseille and Le Havre. Now he is preparing to revive his career in his native France with Lorient, who finished 10th in Ligue 1 last season.

Benjamin Mendy won the 2018 World Cup with the France team.