Sports
Chelsea’s Edouard Mendy becomes first African goalkeeper to win Champions League
Chelsea’s Edouard Mendy became the first African goalkeeper to win a Champions League title in its current form after Chelsea defeated Manchester City 1 – 0 on Satuday night.
The Senegalese international is also the first African keeper to play in the final since Bruce Grobbelaar in 1985.
According to records, Zimbabwe’s Bruce Grobbelaar won the titles during the European Cup era in 1984 with Liverpool.
At that time, the former Zimbabwe international became the first African player to feature in a European Cup final, a game in which the Reds defeated AS Roma on penalties in 1984. He was almost a two-time winner, only for Liverpool to fall short against Juventus in 1985 final.
Mendy was signed from Ligue 1 outfit Rennes in a £22m ($31m) deal after the club got tired of Kepa Arrizabalaga’s costly errors. Since his arrival, he has proven to be one of the best signings, making crucial saves for the Londoners who finished fourth in the 2020-21 Premier League campaign.
On May 29, 2021, Chelsea had won the Champions League for the second time with a fully deserved victory over Manchester City in an all-Premier League confrontation in Porto.
WE'VE DONE IT!!!!!!!#ChelseaChampions #UCLFinal pic.twitter.com/7VZ4RP8Kh6
— Champions of Europe ? (@ChelseaFC) May 29, 2021
Thomas Tuchel got the better of his Manchester City counterpart Pep Guardiola for the third time since succeeding sacked Frank Lampard in January to bring European club football’s biggest prize back to Stamford Bridge for the first time since 2012.
Kai Havertz, blossoming after a slow start to his Chelsea career, got the winner three minutes before half-time when he collected a defence-splitting pass from Mason Mount to round City goalkeeper Ederson and score.
