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Pundits’ concern for Edouard Mendy dissipated as he maintained his 10th clean sheet in 16 appearances for Chelsea in a 3-0 win over West Ham … equaling the same number achieved by Kepa Arrizabalaga in 45 games with Frank Lampard
- Chelsea bounced back from two losses with a 3-0 win over West Ham United
- Concerns raised about Edouard Mendy following mistakes in recent games
- Gary Neville before the game said the 28-year-old needed a ‘mistake-free night’
- The 28-year-old kept his tenth clean sheet since arriving from Rennes
- Kepa needed 29 more games to reach that number with Frank Lampard
Edouard Mendy reached an impressive milestone of his 10th clean sheet in just his 16th game since his summer move to Chelsea.
The 28-year-old had a relatively calm game during his 3-0 win over West Ham, but the impressive statistic is a very telling figure of the improvement Chelsea have made since signing from Rennes.
Mendy was hired during the summer transfer window for £ 22 million, as Frank Lampard looked to solve his problem at the goalkeeper position.
Edouard Mendy has made a huge difference for Chelsea since arriving in summer from Rennes
Mendy has received criticism from some for mistakes made in recent Chelsea games.
But now he’s hit ten clean sheets for Frank Lampard’s side in just 16 appearances.
Kepa Arrizabalaga was Chelsea’s regular starter before Mendy, however he struggled during Lampard’s first season at Stamford Bridge as manager.
In fact, it took the Spaniard 45 massive games to hit ten clean sheets since Lampard’s appointment.
Mendy, along with the signings of Thiago Silva and Ben Chilwell, the improved form of Kurt Zouma and the impressive Reece James have been seen as vital parts of Chelsea’s defensive upgrade since last season.
Chelsea were 17 games unbeaten before consecutive losses to Everton and Wolves last week.
His clean sheet allayed concerns Sky Sports experts Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher voiced before the game, following a few mistakes in recent games.
One of the errors noted was that Mendy collided with Dominic Calvert-Lewin for the Everton penalty that earned him the game against Chelsea.
Mendy was signed to replace Kepa Arrizabalaga who had had problems in the Chelsea goal
Neville said before the West Ham game started: ‘We thought he had initially solved his goalkeeping problem.
“ Kepa had a huge problem: every shot that went to goal seemed like it was going to enter.
And then in the first six games, he had those five clean sheets, but in those six games he only had eight shots on goal and what we’ve seen in the last few games is that the mistakes are starting to pile up. You need a night without mistakes tonight.
Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher expressed some concern over recent Mendy demos
Carragher added: ‘When they brought him in, you’re thinking he’s coming from Rennes, 28 years old, not late in his career but they would have seen him sooner, how good is he really?
“He came in and made a big difference, but I think every goalkeeper who came in would have made a big difference. I think (Neville) is right about Kepa.
But what happened the last few weeks, it will be interesting to see how he deals with it. He’s made a very good start, he’s made a few mistakes lately, but all eyes will be on him a bit longer. ‘
