Edouard Mendy has posted a message to Chelsea fans after sealing his £28m move to Stamford Bridge from Spanish side Rennes earlier this week.
The Senegalese international goalkeeper arrives in London to directly challenge Kepa Arrizabalaga for a starting spot in between the sticks in Frank Lampard’s side.
For Mendy, the move comes just a year after joining Rennes from Reims. His move from Rennes to Chelsea mirrors the same switch that Petr Cech made in 2004 on his way to becoming a club legend in south west London.
Mendy arrives into the Premier League having played just 73 appearances in top-flight football in France during his career so far.
After sealing his move from France to London, Mendy posted a message to his new fan base on Instagram.
“From DH to League 2, via N2, to reach League 1, I am now joining one of the biggest European clubs,” Mendy posted on his Instagram account.
“Work, sacrifices and efforts always pay off in the end, and it is with a lot of pride that I join my new home, Chelsea.”
With that said, Mendy has been warned that Chelsea is not the "right environment" for a goalkeeper to develop his career.
That's according to David James.
“I studied Kepa before he came to Chelsea and he fascinated me,” James told talkSPORT. “This guy was capable of making saves I hadn’t seen in the Premier League for a long time, top end stuff, proper, proper top end stuff.
“But then he would throw one in and I’d think, ‘OK, there’s a flaw here but if you get the right coaching and right environment for him, this guy could be the best goalkeeper in the Premier League’.
“But I don’t think Kepa’s had the protection at Chelsea, I think he’s been hung out to dry. If he doesn’t do something right, it’s wrong and he gets absolutely lambasted by everybody.
“And I’ve been in Kepa’s position, when I was at Liverpool I was that guy.
“In the end you have to look at yourself to see what you can do, but it’s also about whether you’ve got the environment.
“You spend £72million on a player, talk about an investment, then you’ve got to work out how much do you spend to make him better rather than, ‘you’re that cost, you should sort it out yourself or not make the mistakes’, which is ludicrous.
“With Kepa it just seems like confirmation bias; everyone doesn’t like him, so let’s get someone else who could fix the problem."
