Gary Neville hit out at Manchester City defender Benjamin Mendy after Pep Guardiola’s 1-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur yesterday, while speaking on Sky Sports.
What’s the story?
Since moving to the north west, injuries and inconsistency have hampered the France international.
Mendy has played just 75 times since his move to the Etihad Stadium in 2017. That’s an average of little more than 18 games a season across four full terms.
And he endured yet another torrid game yesterday against a Spurs attack consisting of Lucas Moura, Steven Bergwijn and Son Heung-min.
And Mendy initially came in for criticism from the Manchester United legend after committing a foul on the Brazilian winger. Commentating for Sky Sports (15/08, 17:59), Neville lashed out at the Frenchman claiming he “can’t defend”.
Talking about Mendy, Neville said: “He can’t defend, Mendy can’t defend. He’s so loose in his game.”
And Neville thought Guardiola had better options among City’s substitutes.
He said: “Zinchenko is on the bench. Kyle Walker is on the bench.”
Guardiola has previously said he “wants to kill” the Frenchman sometimes because of his mistakes.
Mendy is far too big a liability for Manchester City
If it’s not injuries, it’s his performances on the pitch. Mendy is far too big a liability for Manchester City.
A heatmap of yesterday’s encounter shows Bergwijn, Son and Moura all targeted City’s left side.
You would imagine Oleksandr Zinchenko would be City’s first choice left-back from now on after yesterday’s disaster.
The Ukrainian is far more reliable in a defensive sense. His performances under Guardiola have grown increasingly assured.
His place in last season’s Champions League final was a sign of the Spaniard’s faith in his defender. It makes Mendy’s start yesterday all the more confusing.
Meanwhile, Glenn Hoddle has made a Manchester City/Harry Kane prediction.
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