Fans react as Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy wins Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal
As confirmed by the club’s official website, Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy won the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal last night, after beating Egypt on penalties at the end of 120 minutes of goalless action.
Liverpool’s Sadio Mane spurned the chance to give Senegal the lead and put the game to bed early in the first half, as the Reds star missed his penalty. What followed was 90 minutes of action which saw no goals, followed by an extra time that produced the same result.
Mendy proved to be the hero in the resulting penalty shootouts, saving a crucial penalty from Egypt’s Mohanad Lasheen, which allowed Mane to make up for his earlier miss in the game to win the trophy for Senegal.
The Lions of Teranga number 1 proved to be the difference on the night, as his heroics throughout the tournament saw him receive a well-deserved winner’s medal and the award for the tournament’s best goalkeeper.
Penalty shootout hero
Mendy was largely untroubled in the final, with Egypt producing very few chances to help put them ahead in the final. However, when it mattered most, the Chelsea star rose to the occasion and kept a clean sheet for his team. The star then went on to be the hero in the penalty shootout, seeing an Egypt penalty hit the post and saving the next one, which allowed Senegal and Mane to steal the opportunity to win.
The Senegalese player will now join up with his Chelsea teammates in Abu Dhabi, as the Blues head to compete in the FIFA Club World Cup. Mendy will look to add yet another trophy to his cabinet this month at club level.
Last night’s win meant that in the past year, Mendy has won the Champions League, Super Cup, and the Africa Cup of Nations, marking an incredibly successful period in the goalkeeper’s career. The player also kept a clean sheet in the Champions League and Africa Cup of Nations, which adds more weight to his name as a world-class keeper.
The player now has more opportunities to win trophies this season, with the FIFA Club World, Carabao Cup, FA Cup, and Champions League still very much on Chelsea’s radar. The African star could end the season on an incredible note if the Blues manage to win everything in sight.
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Mendy’s stock has just gone up after last night’s international win, after the goalkeeper joined Chelsea as a relative unknown. Now, the player is arguably the world’s most in-form shot-stopper, and Blues fans will consider themselves lucky to have him in their side as we pursue more trophies during the remainder of the season.
Let us now see how our fans reacted to this news as they took to the social media website Twitter to express their happiness at Mendy helping Senegal lift their maiden AFCON title.