Joe Mendes moved to FC Basel in the summer. Picture: www.imago-images.de
On September 2, 2024, 21-year-old right back Josaphat Mendes moved from Braga to FC Basel at the last minute on loan with an option to buy. A portrait of a boy from Sweden who quickly became a regular player, grew up at home in Switzerland and had big plans for FCB.
Jacob Weber/ch media
When FC Basel visited Hammarby IF on August 26, 2021, the match sheet read “No lineup” after Joe Mendes' name. In what should have been a memorable game, Arthur Cabral saved FCB from penalties and actually managed to reach the divisional league group stages despite falling 3-0 down. Mendes, who made his first-team debut against Maribor a month ago, recalled: “The game against Basel was a difficult game. I was in the dressing room with a serious injury. eliminated.”
Basel celebrates after defeating Hammarby.Image: trapezoid
Mendes, whose parents are of Congolese and Portuguese descent, was born and raised in Stockholm and has played 622 minutes for FCB. That's a lot more than Hammarby, who made just one appearance against Maribor and the then 18-year-old Swedish national team player was subsequently sent to the second team.
Mendes' story also begins in Stockholm, but a few kilometers northwest. He grew up in the suburb of Hulsta and began playing football for local clubs at the age of five. At the age of twelve, he entered AIK Solna Academy, a local rival of Hammarby IF. At 18, Mendes switched sides because AIK didn't want to give him a professional contract yet. “There's some bad news,” Mendez said, crossing his arms and speaking in a calm voice about his career.
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But just a year later, Mendes returned. His two-year contract was terminated by his youth club AIK after an outstanding season with Hammarby II, which helped Mendes make his debut in the Swedish Serie A at the age of 19. “AIK was and still is a club close to my heart,” Mendes said today.
In January 2023, he will venture abroad. The target is Braga, a city in northern Portugal with 200,000 inhabitants whose sports club has been among the top five in Portugal in all seasons since 2015. “It's a big step, but I'm ready,” Mendes said. The Portuguese team is significantly better tactically and technically. But Mendes said that even in the Super League, where the way the game is played is more direct than in Portugal's possession league, the way football is played is much better than in Sweden.
Joe Mendes moved to Sporting Braga in January 2023.Picture: www.imago-images.de
Mendes will win the League Cup with the Portuguese in 2024 and participate in the Champions League. Against Real Madrid, he will face Vinicius Junior twice as a right-back. “Then, in my opinion, the best player in the world right now came to me. But I held on to his dribbling,” Mendes said. In one and a half years, he wore the red and white jersey a total of 41 times. But 1,899 minutes of game time wasn't enough for him. With the prospect of more playing time dimming in the new season, Mendes proposed changes to Braga's sporting director in August.
Shortly before the end of the transfer window, we made our first contact with FC Basel. “Basel is the biggest club in Switzerland and they worked very hard to look after me,” Mendes said. He often visited his cousins in Geneva, but had never been to Switzerland before. When athletic director Daniel Starkey and coach Fabio Celestini told him on a Zoom call that they were looking for someone who could help immediately, Mendez agreed. “My father and counselor advised me to listen to my heart.”
Joe Mendes soon became a regular player of FC Basel. Picture: www.imago-images.de
Mendes has been a regular at FCB since September 15th and the Nyon Cup. “We didn't have anyone else in his position at the beginning,” Celestini said. “But he also did a great job with his energy. “He just wanted to cross more often. Because he can actually do a good job, the coach said.
Mendes himself is satisfied with his start in Basel, “The atmosphere in our team is good, I get along well with everyone, and I'm happy to be here,” Mendes said. Visiting the Autumn Fair together is also a reflection of a good mood. There are no photos of Mendes riding roller coasters because he is afraid of heights. “I prefer bumper cars,” he said with a laugh.
FC Basel at the Autumn Fair.
Josaphat Woodin-Mendes, who everyone called Joe since he was a kid, spent the most time with Moussa Cisse and Romario Barro, who also joined the team late. After moving into an apartment in Esch, Mendez quickly adapted since he spoke multiple languages (Lingala, English, Swedish and a bit of French and Portuguese). The youngest of four children is also helped by the fact that he receives regular family visits.
Mendes wants FCB to use buy option
Mendes is currently only on loan, but FCB has the option to purchase the player, whose market value is estimated at 3 million francs. «I am very happy here. So why shouldn't I stay a little longer? But I haven't given any concrete ideas about it yet,” said Mendes. His personal goals are ambitious: “I want to help the team that is doing well to finish as high as possible in the table. “
Mendes duels with Christian Weziger.Picture: www.imago-images.de
Jon Dahl Thomasson, the national team coach at the time, could also be contacted. He has not been called up since making his debut for Sweden in a friendly against Iceland in January 2023. Mendes is too old for the U21 team now. But after missing out on the European Championships, Sweden hopes to end a long-term crisis with a number of young players in the national team. Mendes is willing to help, too. This is why he has so far rejected offers from the Congolese team, who are trying hard to land Mendes.
But his mother's country was also “a choice.” Since moving to Basel, the name Joe Mendes is no longer a “no team”. At the national team level, that will change at some point as well.
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