Arriving from OGC Nice at Leicester City under Claude Puel, Nampalys Mendy was meant to be the rock in front of the Foxes’ defence.
Instead, a serious injury hampered his settling in, and he never quite found the regular first-team football he was hoping for in the Premier League.
He remains at the King Power Stadium for the time being, but with a contract expiring at the end of the season, the former France U21 international will be a free agent in the summer.
He managed just six appearances under Brendan Rodgers this season, which wasn’t exactly ideal to showcase his ability, but the 27-year-old still has a big fan in Puel, who is now at Saint-Étienne.
According to Le10 Sport on Tuesday, the former Leicester manager is ‘actively working’ on bringing the defensive midfielder back to Ligue 1, trying to convince both the player to return to France and his board to give him the financial green light to secure the transfer.
The problem is that those in charge at Saint-Étienne still want the final words on incomings, especially since they still aren’t sure whether or not to sack Puel over the break.
The issue with Mendy will be his wages, as it’s ‘financially impossible’ for the French club to match what he was earning in England.
That’s why Puel will need to convince the Leicester midfielder to lower his salary if he wants a reunion to take place.
The ball appears to now firmly be in Mendy’s court.
