The Madness of Mensah

With controversial Ghana defender Jonathan Mensah moving to Ligue 1 new-boys Evian Thonon-Gaillard under somewhat controversial circumstances, we asked Serie A enthusiast Luca Persico of Global Calcio for his opinions on the defender and what can be expected from him should the move be sanctioned.

While many in France are familiar with Olympique Lyonnais defender John Mensah, his namesake Jonathan is fast becoming equally well-known for both good and bad reasons.

The 21 year-old, who is no relation to John, has signed for newly-promoted Évian from Udinese, via a loan spell at Spanish outfit Granada.  A talented, but controversial figure, who is this ‘new Mensah’ and what can Évian fans expect from the man know as Jonathan in the new season, if he is able to play for them?

A solid and uncompromising defender, known for his pace and athleticism, Jonathan has been renowned as one of Africa’s best defensive prospects for a number of years.  He first came to prominence at the 2009 African Youth Championship, which is a tournament for players aged Under-20.  He starred at the heart of the Ghana defence as they lifted the trophy, following a 2 – 0 win over Cameroon in the final.  The same team then went on and repeating that feat at the Under-20 World Cup, defeating Brazil on penalties, later in the year.

Despite having only recently joined South African side Free State Stars, he was been tipped to quickly move onto Europe.  English Premier League teams Aston Villa and Fulham were said to be interested, while Greek giants Panathinaikos were also keen.  He eventually signed for Udinese, in January 2010.  The Zebrette are renowned for their youth system and giving young players a chance. Part of that process for their most talented prospects is a loan period with their feeder club, Granada, and sure enough Jonathan made the switch before he had even touched down in Udine.  However he rarely featured, with manager Fabri preferring to use his tried and tested defenders.

Having made his international debut following the Under-20 World Cup success, Jonathan, along with the likes of Dominic Adiyiah and André Ayew, was fast-tracked firstly into Ghana’s 2010 African Cup of Nations squad and then was selected by manager Milovan Rajevac for the 2010 World Cup.  Expected only to be a reserve, Jonathan was thrust into the first-team for the second group game against Australia, following a string of injuries to other defenders.  He retained his place for the final group match against Germany and the Second Round victory over United States.

Despite giving away a penalty against United States, the maturity he had shown and his performances throughout the tournament had not gone unnoticed.  Udinese had a wanted man on their hands, with the likes Olympique Lyonnais and Newcastle United eager to sign him.  It was somewhat surprising, therefore, that he was sent for another loan spell with Granada.  Udinese seemingly didn’t want to cash in, nor did they want to risk him been sat on the bench for a season.

This time around, he featured more regularly for Granada, as they secured a surprising promotion to La Liga, via a play-off victory over Elche.  Jonathan played 15 times throughout the season, scoring one goal.  It was expected he would return to Udinese, but the defender seemingly had other plans:

“Udinese have been very good to me and I am very happy to be at this club. Football can be a strange workplace, though, and you can move any time two clubs agree terms.”

On 8th July Évian announced that they had signed Jonathan on a free transfer, with the defender agreeing a four-year deal.   That, however, may not be the last we hear of this transfer.

The next day, reports emerged that Udinese would be reporting Jonathan for agreeing a deal with Évian without their permission.  The club also planned to report FIFA agent Antoine Figali for instigating the move, as well as Évian for ‘encouraging the player to break his contract.’  We await the outcome of Udinese’s appeal, with potential repercussions extending further than just this transfer deal if Évian are found guilty.

This is not the first time Jonathan has courted controversy.  Following Ghana’s Under-20 World Cup victory over Brazil, he went AWOL, undergoing trails with various French teams without the permission of his then owners Free State Stars.

Whether his transfer to Évian will be completed remains unclear, but there is seemingly never a dull moment following the career of Jonathan Mensah.