By James Gamble

A former neighbour of Benjamin Mendy has claimed the footballer was forced to knock £1m off from the price of his mansion - as no one wants to live there.

The ex-Manchester City defender, who was cleared of charges of rape and sexual assault in two trials last year, has cut the price of his luxurious home from an initial £5M to £4M after failing to attract interest.

The sprawling property includes a home cinema, swimming pool, gym and spa and has been slashed in price for the second time after he's failed to sell it since last summer. 

The 29-year-old, who is now seeking to rebuild his footballing career at French Ligue 1 side Lorient, first put the Prestbury property on the market in August last year.

But a former neighbour of the French full-back says he believes the house has struggled to sell due to all the controversy surrounding the player while he was in the UK.

The huge six-bedroom mansion, in the village of Mottram St Andrew, stands on one of the most exclusive roads in Cheshire's 'golden triangle', made up of villages between Prestbury, Alderley Edge and Wilmslow. 

Former owners and renters at the property include ex-City manager Mark Hughes, England cricketer and Top Gear star Freddie Flintoff - who never lived there but spent two years rebuilding the house - and celebrity couple Peter Crouch and Abbey Clancy. 

World Cup winner Mendy purchased the home from Flintoff for £4.8m in 2018 - a decade after the cricketer bought the property for £1.8m.

The 11,000 square foot private residence sits on roughly 1.75 acres of Cheshire countryside and features six bedroom suites - four with dressing rooms - an open plan living area, a games room, a home cinema, a swimming pool and steam room and a gym and spa.

One of Mendy's ex-neighbours in the village, who wishes to remain anonymous, said he used to see the 'humble' footballer around when he lived there. 

But he added it was obvious no one now wanted to buy the opulent property without a major price cut.

Asked what it was like having Mendy as a neighbour, the Cheshire resident, who is a Man City fan, said: "It was OK, but you could see what was going on all the time, cars going in and out.

"As a footballer, you have to have more discipline. You can't be going out all the time. 

"But you would see him in the street and he was normal as anything. 

"He's taken a mil off because no one's going to pay the asking price for it. 

"Obviously he got found not guilty of criminal charges, but the house has been dragged through the mud and it is definitely putting people off.

"It will probably go down [in price] even more. He's already lost £800,000 on it, and that's how much he owes HMRC. 

"Nobody wants a house that's had so much bad publicity."

The description of the property, managed by estate agents Savills, reads: "This impressive home was built about 15 years ago and has been upgraded twice in the intervening years. 

"Extending to over 11,000 sq ft across five levels with a stunning basement pool area, sports hall and cinema room.

"The reception floor is mainly open plan with a large hall, living dining kitchen area and a stunning living room opening into a more formal dining area. 

"A quiet study lies separately to the front."

Other advertised selling points for potential buyers were the property's proximity to leading private schools, 'good restaurants and bistros' in nearby Prestbury, and 'lovely walks in the surrounding countryside'.

However, the description also states that the current price of the property 'reflects the need for some remedial and refurbishment works', including the 'reinstatement of the swimming pool'. 

Mendy joined City in the summer of 2017 from French club AS Monaco - after they beat Paris St Germain to the Ligue 1 title in the previous season - for a reported £52m, the world-record transfer fee for a defender at the time. 

He won the Premier League in his first season in England before being arrested for allegations of sexual offences. 

Mendy was subsequently suspended by City, and never played another match for the club. 

In July last year he was cleared of rape and attempted rape during a retrial at Chester Crown Court. 

After his first trial at the same court, which ended in January last year, he was cleared of six counts of rape and one of sexual assault relating to four young women. 

Both trials heard Mendy had led a hard-partying lifestyle whilst at City, going out to nightclubs several times a week and having sex with numerous young women at his Chester home. 

A hearing at the High Court following his acquittal heard Mendy was seeking to sell his home and was seeking millions of pounds in back pay from Man City in order to avoid going bankrupt. 

HM Revenue and Customs is seeking a bankruptcy order against the France international over a tax debt of nearly £800,000, a specialist judge was told.