Maturing talent is producing his best

THE idea of Nathaniel Mendez-Laing acting as a mentor for young players would until recently have seemed ludicrous.

- Chris Dunlavy

He’s been rapped for driving without a licence. Sacked by Cardiff after a random drugs test found traces of cocaine. Criticised by Peterborough for being overweight.

Yet as he enters the latter stages of his career at Derby, the 31-year-old appears to have consigned those problems to the past.

“Nat’s a great character off the pitch,” said Rams defender Curtis Nelson in December. “He helps keep morale high and he’s a good craic but he cares a lot.

“He always asks how people are and gives it that personal touch. He looks after the young lads as well. He keeps an eye on Kane Wilson and they are in a car school together. It’s really good to see. He may not be the loudest on the pitch, but there are lots of good things he does off it.”

And on it, too. With Mendez-Laing’s new-found maturity has come arguably the most productive spell of his career.

Ahead of the weekend’s fixtures, nobody in League One had directly contributed to more goals than the Birmingham-born wideman, whose haul of nine goals and 17 assists in all competitions is already a career-best return.

Those figures are a continuation of the form Mendez-Laing showed after joining from Sheffield Wednesday last season, culminating in a first-ever call to the Guatemalan national side, for whom he qualifies through his late grandmother. He has since won eight caps.