Nathaniel Mendez-Laing

He made his Shrewsbury debut two days later, coming on as a substitute for Bahrudin Atajić in the 59th minute of a 1–1 draw against Brentford.

Nathaniel Otis Mendez-Laing (born 15 April 1992) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for EFL League One club Derby County.

Born and raised in England to a Jamaican father and a Belizean mother of Guatemalan descent, he plays for the Guatemala national team at international level.

Born in Birmingham, he began his career with Wolverhampton Wanderers, making his professional debut in 2009 at the age of nineteen.

Having represented England at under-16 and under-17 level, he made his senior debut for Wolves on 25 August 2009 in a League Cup victory over Swindon Town and was named Man of the Match for his performance at the age of seventeen.

He subsequently signed his first professional contract with the club in March 2010.

Mendez-Laing joined League One side Peterborough United on loan for the 2010–11 season on 1 July 2010.

He made his debut for the club on the opening day of the 2010–11 season, starting in a 3–0 victory over Bristol Rovers.

He made forty appearances in total, scoring five times, during the season as Peterborough made the play-offs, where they won promotion back to the Championship at the first attempt.

During the close season, between June and August, it was confirmed that a fee had been agreed to permanently transfer Mendez-Laing to Peterborough, around £250,000.

However, the move collapsed when personal terms could not be agreed.

However, after loan spells with Peterborough United and Sheffield United, he left the club, joining Peterborough on a permanent deal in 2012.

He made 60 appearances for Peterborough, spending time on loan with Portsmouth, Shrewsbury Town and Cambridge United, before joining Rochdale where he made 83 appearances during a two-year spell.

Instead of moving back to Peterborough, Mendez-Laing moved on loan to League One side Sheffield United in a deal to run until 3 January 2012, making his début for the Blades a few days later, in the first found of the League Cup against Hartlepool United.

He played regularly until picking up an injury at the end of September which sidelined him for a number of weeks.

Having returned to his parent club for rehabilitation he then sustained another injury whilst warming up for his first game back at Bramall Lane which was to keep him out for the remainder of his loan spell, thus he returned to the Midlands having made eleven appearances and scoring one goal in his time at United.

In July 2012, Mendez-Laing revived his move to former loan club Peterborough United, a deal that he had turned down the previous summer.

He signed a three-year contract after the clubs agreed an undisclosed fee.

He later commented on his departure from Wolves, stating that he chose to accept Peterborough's second offer as he "wanted to go and play" but believed he was given the wrong guidance.

His Peterborough debut was delayed after he sustained a hamstring injury, which was expected to rule him out for between four and six weeks.

He returned from injury on 15 September 2012 and scored his first goal for Peterborough on his debut in a 5–2 away defeat to Burnley.

In November of that year Mendez-Laing was suspended and placed on the transfer list after a public-order offence in Peterborough town centre with teammates Gabriel Zakuani, Emile Sinclair and Tyrone Barnett,

with manager Darren Ferguson announcing that Mendez-Laing subsequently had no future at the club.

On 15 November 2012, Mendez-Laing signed on a one-month loan for Portsmouth, making his debut, on 17 November 2012, in a 1–0 loss against Doncaster Rovers.

After the match, Mendez-Laing spoke about his debut, saying Portsmouth could reap the benefits of reviving his career.

After making four appearances, Mendez-Laing's loan spell at Portsmouth was extended until the start of January.

After five further appearances however, Mendez-Laing returned to Peterborough.

Following his return from Portsmouth, Mendez-Laing made an appearance for Peterborough as a substitute in a 2–1 loss against Nottingham Forest.

Soon after, manager Darren Ferguson explained his apparent change of heart regarding Mendez-Laing, saying that he (Ferguson) had now forgiven him, commenting "I don't bear grudges. Mendez-Laing is back at the club and it's now up to me and the coaching staff to get the best out of him as a player. He clearly has ability, but he must also now knuckle down and do all he can to help this team."

His return saw him gain more playing time in the first team and he scored his second Peterborough goal, in a 5–1 win over Millwall on 19 February 2013.

He scored his third goal in the last game of the season, a 3–2 loss against Crystal Palace, that confirmed Peterborough's relegation.

Ahead of the 2013–14 season, Mendez-Laing switched shirt number from 44 to 19.

However, at the start of the season, he was left out for the first four matches at the start of the season and drew criticism from Ferguson over his fitness levels: "Mendez didn't come back to the club anywhere near fit enough."

His first appearance of the 2013–14 season came on 24 August 2013 where he came on as a substitute for Lee Tomlin in the 74th minute during a 5–0 victory over Tranmere Rovers.

His fitness concerns continued, resulting him being an unused substitute for four matches, although he scored a hat-trick for the club's reserve side in a 4–0 win over Thresham College.

After this, Mendez-Laing returned to the first team and scored his first league goal of the season, in a 1–0 win over Shrewsbury Town on 19 October 2013.

On 30 January 2014, Mendez-Laing was sent out on loan to Shrewsbury Town on a short-term deal.

In 2017, he joined Cardiff City, where he helped the side win promotion to the Premier League in his first season.

Mendez-Laing has also represented England at under-16 and under-17 level, before declaring for Guatemala in 2023.

Born in Birmingham, West Midlands to a Jamaican father and a Belizean mother of Guatemalan descent, Mendez-Laing is a product of the Wolverhampton Wanderers academy.