2 years ago
The 29-year-old Senegalese goalkeeper, who has been in fine form since joining Chelsea from Rennes in September 2020, rounded off a fantastic season by assisting Chelsea in winning the Champions League trophy after defeating Manchester City 1-0 in the final.
Despite the achievement, Mendy believes his save in the semi-final against Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge, which prevented the France international from putting Real Madrid ahead, was his finest ever.
When Mendy stretched to keep out a thunderous attempt from Benzema that looked destined for the bottom corner, the Blues and Los Blanco were level at 0-0. Chelsea scored their first goal three minutes after the save and went on to defeat Real Madrid 2-0, advancing to the final on a 3-1 aggregate score.
"I think it was against Madrid, in the semi-final at home, because the score was 0-0 and they had a terrific chance," Mendy said to the club's official website when asked to name his best Champions League save.
I saved Benzema's penalty kick to keep us in the game, then we scored three minutes later, so it's the biggest save I've ever made."
Mendy was named the Yashin Trophy runner-up to Italy's Euro 2020-winning goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma on Monday.
"It's a wonderful success for me, and I'm very proud to be at Chelsea and to be a part of the team," Mendy said of his newest accomplishment. "We did a fantastic job last year, and we're going to do it again this year." Hopefully, everything will go well from here. "I'll see you next year!" In terms of football, 2021 is the best year of my life because it was an incredible season in which we won Europe's biggest trophy in my first season with a major club. It's my best year so far, but I'm hoping for more of the same in the coming years."
Mendy kept 16 clean sheets in 31 Premier League matches for Chelsea last season, as well as nine shutouts in the Champions League.
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