"I would never force to have sex with a woman..." Benjamin Mendy denies raping one woman and trying to rape another

Footballer Benjamin Mendy said he would 'never' force himself on a woman as he gave evidence at his trial for the first time.

The former Manchester City player, 28, denies raping one woman, and attempting to rape another. He told a jury at Chester Crown Court that he wasn't interested in pursuing a 'long term' relationship and that he liked meeting different women.

"A lot of women?," he was asked by his lawyer, Eleanor Laws KC, on the seventh day of the trial.

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"Yes," he replied.

"And engaging in sex or sexual activity?," Ms Laws continued.

"Yes," the defendant replied.

Ms Laws asked the French footballer: "How difficult was it for you to meet women who also just wanted to have sex or a sexual encounter with you?"

"It wasn't difficult," Mr Mendy said. "I'm not arrogant but it wasn't difficult."

But he said he would 'never' force himself on a woman.

"I would never force to have sex with a woman," he told the jury. "When I do something I want to feel the attraction on both sides."

Mr Mendy claims that any sexual contact between him and his two accusers was consensual. He took to the witness box to give evidence for the first time at the trial, which began on June 29.

Woman One has alleged that Mr Mendy tried to rape her at his home in Prestbury, Cheshire. Jurors have heard that the pair met abroad in a nightclub, when Mr Mendy had been undergoing knee surgery.

She became friendly with a friend of Mr Mendy's, who invited her to Manchester in October 2018. The trio, as well as others, went out to a restaurant in Manchester, and later went to a nightclub.

Mr Mendy said there was a 'nice atmosphere', and that he danced with Woman