Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has revealed that Ferland Mendy simply "couldn’t resist" the opportunity to join Real Madrid.
The Blancos confirmed the signing of the left-back for a fee of £47 million ($59m) on Wednesday, taking their summer spending to almost £300m ($378m) after completing deals for Eder Militao, Rodrygo, Luka Jovic and Eden Hazard.
The 24-year-old joined Les Gones from Ligue 2 outfit Le Havre and became one of their key players as they finished third in Ligue 1, with Aulas telling Radio MARCA: "He arrived at Lyon two years ago from Le Havre.
"He started to play for France when he was just 22; his rise has been very quick.”
The Lyon president also revealed that he shares a healthy relationship with his opposite number at Real Madrid, which only helped facilitate a smooth transfer.
"Florentino Perez and I are very good friends, and this always influences negotiations," he added.
Zinedine Zidane is wasting no time in attempting to re-assert his side as a dominant force in Spain after they failed to mount a title challenge against Barcelona in La Liga, as well as exiting the Champions League in the round of 16 against surprise package Ajax.
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It was the France legend’s call that convinced Mendy to make the switch, Aulas confirmed, adding: “It was Zidane's request, yes.
"When he called [Mendy], he couldn't resist."
"It's up to Zidane to decide! [whether Mendy starts over Marcelo]"
Mendy made 79 appearances for Lyon across two seasons, scoring three goals as the club made their Champions League return ahead of the 2018-19 season.
The Frenchman also made his international debut last season, starting in a 1-0 friendly win over Uruguay before going on to make his competitive debut in Les Bleus’ 2-0 defeat to Turkey in Euro 2020 qualifying.
Aulas has chosen not to dwell on losing the 24-year-old, and has already signed his replacement ahead of the 2019-20 season.
"We've signed another player, Heritier Deyonge [from PSV Eindhoven], who has the same characteristics and is a prospect for the future," he continued.
"He's Belgian and is 17 years old."
