A world champion footballer accused of eight rapes, an attempted rape and a sexual assault in England: Benjamin Mendy’s trial opens on Wednesday in Chester, far from the playing fields where the Frenchman was accustomed to being in the news.
At 28, the footballer was accused by seven women and denies the ten charges of the indictment, which refer to events that would have taken place between October 2018 and August 2021 at his home in Prestbury, Cheshire.
He is now on trial along with another man, Louis Saha Matturie -no relation to former French soccer player Louis Saha-, accused for his part of eight rapes and four sexual assaults on eight women between July 2012 and August 2021. Louis Saha Matturie also pleaded not guilty.
Mendy, 2018 World Cup champion with France in Russia, changed the playing fields a year ago for the defendants’ benches and prison cells in Liverpool and Manchester, where he spent more than four months, between August 2021 and January 2022 in provisional arrest. He was released in early January and remains under judicial control, pending this trial.
Mendy has not played a game since August 15, 2021. His club, Manchester City, suspended him when the scandal broke.
Problems due to indiscipline
Until this case, the Parisian player’s career had had an ascending sporting trajectory and he had the peace of mind of having a long-term contract with one of the best clubs in the world. In his record, in addition to the 2018 world title, he has four national titles in England with City and one French champion with Monaco, among other successes.
Hyperactive on social networks, he stood out in his club celebrations for his jokes and his role as a DJ.
On the pitch he is known for his solid left-back with the ability to join the attack, despite the fact that at times in his career he struggled to stay at the right weight and fit.
Before the World Cup he had a serious injury to his right knee. He then had surgery on his left knee and in early 2019 he injured a meniscus.
In England, he caused the anger of coach Josep Guardiola for an unauthorized night outing. He also made headlines in the tabloids when his Lamborghini car was impounded for driving without a license or insurance.
But it has not been his indiscipline as a footballer or injuries that has stopped his promising career in its tracks, but these legal problems, for which a verdict is now sought.
