A Premier League footballer has criticised newspapers for using a picture of himself, when reporting on stories about arrested Prestbury footballer Benjamin Mendy.

Édouard Mendy, posted a story on Instagram expressing disappointment that media outlets had used his wrongly picture associating himself with the police case involving Macclesfield area resident Benjamin Mendy.

The goalkeeper for Chelsea was mistaken for the Manchester City defender Benjamin Mendy (27).

Édouard Mendy released the following statement in an Instagram story.

"Sad to see that in 2021, in France as well as in England, for some, black people have neither names nor distinct faces," the Senegal international wrote.

"These 'mistakes' of photos appear anecdotal, but actually they are quite the opposite, they are highly symbolic.

"It's not that complicated to differentiate two faces, especially when the football jersey is of valuable help"

Other than the same surname, the two footballers couldn't be any more different.

They have different nationalities, with Édouard being from Senegal and Benjamin from France.

Édouard lives in London, while Benjamin had lived in 198 miles away in the Macclesfield village of Prestbury until his arrest this summer.

Benjamin now lives in HMP Altcourse in Liverpool, which is even further away from Édouard.

Édouard (29) is also two years older than Benjamin.

The two also play different positions on the pitch, as well as the obvious fact of having different clubs.

And unlike Édouard, Benjamin is currently facing multiple criminal charges.

Media outlets which mistook Édouard's identity for Benjamin included Radio France Internationale, the official French international public radio service broadcaster.

The news coverage was due to the Manchester City outfield player Benjamin Mendy being charged for further sex offences earlier in the week, for which Macclesfield Nub News reported on.

The resident of Withinlee Road did not appear in court or via video link to hear chargers given at Chester Crown Court this Thursday.

Benjamin Mendy faces seven charges in total, against four women, which are: three counts of rape on October 11 2020; sexual touching on January 2 2021; one count of rape on July 24 2021 and two counts of rape on August 23 2021.

Benjamin Mendy will go on trial for these in January 24 2022, with his associate Louis Saha Matturie, of Eccles, Greater Manchester.

Mendy has played for Manchester City since 2017, when he joined from French side AS Monaco for a reported £52m.

He bought his home on Prestbury's Withinlee Road in 2018.

He was suspended by the club after being charged by police, pending an investigation.

Macclesfield: Prestbury footballer Benjamin Mendy charged with two further rapes

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