SM Caen’s Alexandre Mendy has criticised the club’s management for blocking his move to Sunderland last summer.
On Monday, the striker captained his side in their 4-2 defeat to Paris FC. After the tie, he spoke to beIN Sports and aimed a dig at Caen from not letting him join Sunderland. L’Equipe have relayed his comments.
Mendy was determined to join Sunderland. In August 2024, he and his agent publicly said the 31-year-old wanted to make a switch to the Stadium of Light.
The frontman scored 23 goals and registered two assists from 39 games last season. Caen’s former management had promised he could leave last summer.
Sunderland came forward, while Kylian Mbappé’s family became the majority shareholders at Caen in July 2024. They refused to sanction a move, and Mendy has previously spoken about the psychological impact of the failed move.
He’s managed 11 goals and two assists from 28 games and Caen are currently bottom of the Ligue 2 table [18 teams]. They are nine points behind 16th placed Martigues and 13 behind 15th placed Rodez.
Mendy has now used Caen’s struggles this season to publicly slam their leaders for not letting him join Sunderland.
“It’s a reflection of our season,” he said.
“I’m speaking for myself, but when you start a new season with a bad energy, everyone knows what happened during this transfer window for several players, this is what we’re seeing today. We’ll fight until the end, but you only reap what you sow.”
