Nuno Mendes
Nuno Alexandre Tavares Mendes is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain, and the Portugal national team, born on 19 June 2002.
Mendes is a Portugal youth international, representing his country at various levels. He made his full debut in 2021 and was chosen in the squad for Euro 2020. In August 2021, he moved to Paris Saint-Germain on a one-year deal, where he won a Ligue 1 title. He joined the club permanently in May 2022 for a reported fee of 40million euros.
Early Career
Born in Sintra, Lisbon District of Angolan descent, Mendes started playing football aged 9, and his idols growing up were Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, David Alaba, and Marcelo, the two last players being the ones he tried to emulate. During his scouting process, as he returned home from school, Nuno discovered he was being followed by someone, because of fear he ran toward home, afterward he got to know that the man who was following him was a Sporting scout, who later convinced Nuno sign. After that, he spent his 4 years making a two-hour round trip to train every night with his teacher.
Nuno Mendes initially played as an attacking midfielder before being converted to a left-back, a position he struggled with in the beginning.
On August 31, 2021, Nuno Mendes joined Paris Saint-Germain on a season-long loan with an option to buy. He made his Ligue-1 debut for the club on September 11, entering as an 85th-minute substitute in a 4-0 defeat of Clermont.
PSG Signed Nuno Mendes
On April 23, 2022, Nuno helped PSG win their record-tying 10th Ligue 1 title, contributing 27 arrivals for the champions, as he was one of the nominees for the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year award and consequently, he was named in the Ligue 1 Team of the Year alongside two of his teammates.
On May 31st, PSG triggered Nuno Mendes’ buyout clause of 40 million euros and signed him on a Four-year Contract. Nuno from now onwards will only play for PSG as he signed the contract. So, the Portugal left-back Nuno Mendes is now tied to the club from the French Capital until June 30, 2026.
“In his first season in Paris, the Teenage International made 37 appearances, providing two assists and playing his part in the club’s tenth French championship triumph. Nominated for the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year award, he was named the best left-back of the competition at just 19 years of age.”
Style of Play
Nuno Mendes is mainly famous for his offensive capabilities, speed, and technical qualities. Nuno especially as a left-sided attacking full-back or wing-back, allows him to create danger either from a standing start or whilst on the counter-attack.
Mendes is also capable of anticipating attacks and cutting in front of a pass and winning the ball back. However, the defensive side of Nuno Mendes has been brought into question by pundits on occasion, who have cited the inconsistency in his decision-making in front of goal, positioning, and awareness as areas of weakness in need of improvement.
International Career
Nuno Mendes earned his first cap for Portugal at the under-21 level shortly after having made his club debut, in a 4-0 win in Cyprus for the 2021 UEFA Europian Championship qualifiers on September 4, 2020. He has also represented the nations under-16, 17, 19, and 19s as well.
Mendes was selected for UEFA Euro-2020, playing no games in the round-of-16 exit. Santos later revealed that he had planned to use him alongside Raphael during the tournament, but was unable to do so, due to injury problems.
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