Frank Lampard's decision to give Edouard Mendy his first minutes of 2023 in a Chelsea shirt backfired after less than 15 minutes as the goalkeeper found himself in no man's land for Taiwo Awoniyi's opening goal at Stamford Bridge.
The in-form Nigerian forward beat Mendy and Chelsea's defence to a cross from the left-hand-side and punished a Blues side that had started with almost all of the ball. Despite the possession at SW6, there were no chances to show for their dominance on the ball, an all too familiar story for Lampard.
Having continued to select Kepa Arrizabalaga in goal despite dropping the Spaniard throughout his first spell in charge, Lampard turned back to Mendy for the first time in his interim role. His lack of conviction and ultimate mistake from the 31-year-old proved costly for his side, though.
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Mendy had shone under Lampard in 2020, proving himself to be one of the best keepers in the league but has struggled for over 12 months after returning from the African Cup of Nations victorious in 2022. He had been on the cusp of losing his place under Thomas Tuchel following a string of disappointing goals against but it was injury and the appointment of Graham Potter that truly put him to one side.
He missed most of the action between October and November with injury before then being sidelined by the resurgence of Kepa. "It is an opportunity that I think for his part is well deserved from how he's training," Lampard said before the game. "We've got two very good goalkeepers here that have played for us and Kepa's playing really well."
His latest blunder comes 20 league games after his last appearance and won't have eased the pressure on his stance in the squad. Heading into the summer the No. 1 spot is very much up for grabs with both Kepa and Mendy's possible sales in what promises to be a mass exodus from west London.
Both players are out of contract in 2025 and are unlikely to sign a new deal at the club. Mendy had been offered initial terms last year but turned them down with a bid to be paid in-line with the best performers at the club. Now, with his form dipping, competition rising and long-term future far from certain, expected new manager Mauricio Pochettino has a big call to make.
Chelsea are keen to make the goalkeeping spot one of their priorities for the summer window with David Raya and Andre Onana both amongst their targets. The Brentford shot-stopper could be available for around £40m after his manager was bullish about losing him to suitors later this year.
Meanwhile, Inter Milan CEO Giuseppe Marotta has been open about the chances of Onana moving on from Italy. "Onana leaving for €40m? I’d rule this out, honestly. We think he will stay," he said.
"We have not received any offers and Onana is happy in Milano, he wants to stay here. We do not plan to sell him."
Chelsea will not only have to find a way to not only move on one but two underperforming goalkeepers and also bring in at least another of their own to add to the growing list of business on the cards. It is a key position for most managers but Pochettino in particular settled on Hugo Lloris at Tottenham despite the Frenchman appearing to be unsettled in north London before his appointment.
The Blues will now need to find their own answer to Lloris in order to grant just one of Pochettino's transfer demands.
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