Manchester City footballer Benjamin Mendy was constantly late for training because he overslept, a court heard today.
The 28-year-old defender was also said to have had “questionable professionalism” during his time at the club, which he signed for in 2017.
The French International is on trial accused of raping and sexually assaulting a total of six different women on five different occasions at his home in Mottram St Andrew between October 2018 and August last year.
Mendy denies seven counts of rape, one count of attempted rape and one count of sexual assault.
Chester Crown Court previously heard Mendy went clubbing “two or three times a week” and regularly invited people back to his mansion for after parties.
Giving evidence today, Marc Boixasa, former head of first team operations at the Premier League side, said Mendy was “the nicest person he had met in football” but admitted he was “not the perfect professional.”
Jurors heard Mendy became injured during his first season with the club and was sent to Barcelona for treatment.
Mr Boixasa said: “When he came back from Barcelona, sometimes the medical team reported he was late for treatment.
“The attitude was always the same in the sense that he was not like the perfect professional in the sense he was arriving late many times in the morning because he overslept. And that was constant during his stay with the team.
“On one side he was really liked by everyone on the team. It’s true, as I said before, sometimes the professionalism was questionable in terms of arriving late in the morning or arriving late to certain meetings. As I said he was very liked otherwise within the organisation.”
He added: “He was really likeable and approachable from the beginning. He always seemed really happy and sometimes when players arrive they are a bit shy but from day one he tried to build this relationship with all the team-mates, even though there was the language barrier.
“I would say [he is like] a big heart with two legs. He was someone who will always give everything to people and that’s why I think he was so liked by the people around him.
“He was like a normal football player – gave everything for his career. Perhaps at some points his professionalism was questionable but he was always training hard and always willing to help all the team-mates and stuff.
“Always good mood, good energy, very positive.”
Yvonne Shay, a cleaner who worked at Mendy’s house for five years, also gave evidence this morning and told the court she would regularly have to clean up after Mendy’s parties.
Jurors heard her daughter also worked at the house as a cleaner.
She said on one occasion the house was “catastrophic” with food everywhere and a glass coffee table had been smashed.
Ms Shay said she would often see women in the house when she came to clean but would only speak to them to greet them or say goodbye.
She said of Mendy: “I am quite shocked to hear all these allegations have been made against him.
“If I felt he was capable of those kind of actions I would never have allowed my daughter to go there and be there on her own.
“And he isn’t like that – he is not that kind of person.”
The trial continues on Monday.
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