Hull City Break Transfer Record for Nobel Mendy

Hull City have torn up their transfer history to land Nobel Mendy, completing a club-record deal for the highly rated Rayo Vallecano centre-back.

The 21-year-old Senegal international has signed a five-year contract at the MKM Stadium, with the Tigers holding an option to extend it by a further year. The fee remains officially undisclosed, but Hull confirmed it exceeds the £20m plus add-ons they paid earlier this month for Greece goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis from Olympiacos.

That figure had only just eclipsed the club’s long-standing record – the £13m spent on Ryan Mason from Tottenham in 2016. Hull have now gone bigger again, and decisively so.

“I am very happy to be here and very proud to be here as well,” Mendy said after sealing the move. “I am a very athletic player, and I am a defender at heart. I also really enjoy the game and coming out from the back cleanly and aggressively when needed.

“I have wanted to play in the Premier League since I was little, so it's a great challenge to face and I am ready for it.”

Mendy arrives with a growing reputation from Spain. A Paris FC academy product, he spent last season in La Liga with Rayo Vallecano, scoring twice in 28 appearances. His final game for the club came on a big stage: the Conference League final, where Rayo lost to Crystal Palace.

It was the second successive year he had reached that showpiece. The season before, he made the same journey with Real Betis, only to fall short against Chelsea in the final.

On the international front, Mendy earned his first Senegal cap in March, featuring against The Gambia. Now, with Hull throwing unprecedented money and faith behind him, his next step comes in the Premier League spotlight.