With French opponents visiting Stamford Bridge as Mendy and Chelsea continue our defence of the Champions League trophy, while proudly wearing the freshly minted FIFA Club World Cup-winners badge on our shirts, the goalkeeper was asked about his early years playing in the country of his birth as he spoke to the media.

It is hard to believe, given the success they have enjoyed together with the Blues recently, that late in the 2012/13 season Mendy and Kante were on opposing sides as Cherbourg played Boulogne in the Championnat National, the third tier of French football, in front of just 1,500 fans. With both teams in the bottom half of the table, Mendy was on the bench as Kante scored in a 2-0 win for Boulogne, before as Edou was then installed as Cherbourg’s keeper for the rest of the season.

When asked about how far they have both come since those days, Mendy said: ‘Of course we’ve talked about it a lot of times. That’s good and honestly it’s like a dream to find another player at the same club who played in the same division as you. So we talk about it and it’s a beautiful thing to find him here and to win trophies with him.’

Our goalkeeper’s journey is even more amazing, given he then dropped out of professional football at the end of that season, not playing a first-team game again until 2016, and he was asked what advice he would give to someone finding themselves in a similar situation in their career.

‘I would just say to keep working, to have faith in your work, believe in yourself,’ he added. ‘When you have an opportunity to show what you can do, to take it and to hug it and to be better and better every day because to find a club is a big start, but to be better and better, I think it’s the most difficult thing. The first competition is against yourself so you have to be better than yesterday and always want to improve.’

Mendy’s journey seems far from over yet, though, as the success keeps coming. Having already won last season’s Champions League, he has enjoyed a dream start to 2022 by playing a big role in Senegal’s first-ever Africa Cup of Nations triumph, before helping Chelsea win the Club World Cup for the first time, all in the space of a week.

‘A lot of good things have happened over the last few days and last few weeks. Obviously I’m really happy and proud for my success with the national team and also with Chelsea.

‘But I don’t have time to celebrate because we have a lot of big games this week and in the coming weeks. So I’m just focused on the next game and then I will have time to celebrate at the end of the season.’

Hopefully there will be even more silverware for Mendy to celebrate with his fellow Blues by that time, as our hunt for more trophies continues in the Champions League last-16 against Lille tomorrow evening.