Brendan Rodgers blamed for 'pushing' Leicester star aside as Celtic boss called out in bombshell French interview

Former Leicester midfielder Nampalys Mendy claims it all went wrong for him as soon as Brendan Rodgers arrived at the club - and his lack of involvement under the Irishman wasn't even the worst thing about it.

Mendy had been a first-team regular at the King Power Stadium for the first half of the 2018/19 season but things turned 180 for him after Rodgers arrived from Celtic in February. Having started 23 of their previous 27 league games, he wasn't named in one of Rodgers' starting lineups for the rest of the season as he turned things around and steered them clear of relegation.

Four frustrating years followed for Mendy as he largely watched from the sidelines while Rodgers led Leicester to FA Cup glory and back into the Champions League - before he was eventually sacked in April this year. And it wasn't until after Rodgers' departure that Mendy was eventually allowed to leave for Lens under freedom of contract.

In a bombshell interview with L'Equipe, Mendy claims he wanted to leave earlier after a fractured relationship with Rodgers, but the club wouldn't let him. Now a regular for the Ligue 1 side - who have lost just once all season and are competing well with Arsenal, Sevilla and PSV in the Champions League - he pinpoints the Irishman's arrival as the moment it all went awry for him in the English Premier League.

He told L'Equipe: “Everything was going well until (Claude) Puel got fired (in February 2019). Another manager arrived in Brendan Rodgers, and he gradually pushed me aside. I never head back. He just kept telling me: ‘I have nothing to reproach you for.'

"And the worst thing is that when I wanted to leave, the club refused. In the end, I was just waiting for my contract to end. Honestly, I’ve come alive