Derby County has announced that winger Nathaniel Mendez-Laing has signed a new contract until at least the summer of 2026, as reported by Derby’s official X Account.
31-year-old Mendez Laing signed for Derby in July 2022 after his contract at Sheffield Wednesday expired. In his first season with Derby, he scored seven goals in 44 games in Sky Bet League 1 as the Rams finished the season in seventh place, one point outside the playoffs. This season, he has been one of the first names on the team sheet. He has featured in 25 games this season, scoring six goals and providing eight assists, mainly playing on the left wing, but has also played down the middle and on the right-hand side.
The Guatemala international, who has six caps to his name, started his career coming through the Wolves academy.  The 31-year-old had loan spells with Peterborough, Sheffield United before leaving to join Peterborough permanently in the summer of 2012. From there, he again went out on loan to Portsmouth, Shrewsbury, and Cambridge United before leaving The Posh and joining Rochdale on a free transfer, where he spent two seasons.
After leaving Rochdale, the winger joined Cardiff City and helped Neil Warnock’s side reach the Premier League. He had an injury-hit season in the Premier League but still featured 20 times, scoring four goals. He stayed with the club after relegation, appearing 27 times.
From Cardiff, he joined Middlesbrough but was only there for a matter of months after signing a short deal. He only made nine appearances for the club.
He was without a club until November 2021, when Sheffield Wednesday snapped him up, where he went on to make 19 appearances, including one in the playoffs against Sunderland.
The winger then made the move to recently relegated Derby County, who at the time were managed by Liam Rosenior after being taken over.
Derby County currently sits fourth in Sky Bet League One, just two points off the automatic promotion places.
Writers View
Mendez-Laing has been a crucial part of Derby’s success so far this season. He is a consistent performer who can provide goals and assists. To go along with his attacking threat, he is also more than happy to do the hard yards and get back to help his full-back out.
He also has the experience of promotion from a higher level, which can only bode well when the more pressurised games get towards the end of the season.