Sevilla are working to keep hold of Batista Mendy after the French midfielder emerged as one of the few clear successes of their season, prompting the club to seek a renegotiation of the €7m purchase clause attached to his loan move.
The 24-year-old, who is of Bissau-Guinean descent, arrived in Andalusia on loan from Trabzonspor for an initial fee of €250,000, with an option to make the move permanent.
While Sevilla’s recruitment strategy has been cautious, Mendy has quietly become a dependable figure in midfield, offering consistency at a time when stability has been difficult to achieve.
The club’s intention is now not whether to sign him permanently, but at what price.
Sevilla believe the conditions are favourable to strike a deal below the original figure, with Trabzonspor increasingly open to selling the player outright.
The Turkish side no longer see Mendy as central to their sporting plans, a position that has significantly reduced their leverage in negotiations.
That shift has strengthened Sevilla’s hand, but it is not their only advantage.
The player’s own stance is proving decisive.
Talks with Mendy’s representatives have already taken place and the message from his camp has been unambiguous: he wants to stay in Seville.
He has made it clear that he feels settled both at the club and in the city, and that he is enjoying life in La Liga.
For Mendy, the loan spell was never intended to be a temporary detour.
Instead, it was viewed as an opportunity to build a long-term future in Spain.
A return to Turkey is not something he is considering, and that clarity has been understood in Trabzon.
With Sevilla aligned with the player’s wishes, the focus now is on finding a financial compromise that reflects the current market reality.
The Andalusian side believe that the combination of Trabzonspor’s willingness to sell and Mendy’s determination to remain in Spain could allow them to close the deal on more favourable terms.
Although the midfielder’s performances have not been flawless, he has offered reliability in a squad that has lacked continuity, a quality the club values highly.
The situation illustrates how modern transfer negotiations are increasingly shaped by players’ preferences as much as by balance sheets.
Mendy has gone about his business without fuss, but his steady impact has not gone unnoticed inside the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán.
Sevilla now hope that the same understated approach will deliver one of their smartest pieces of business in recent seasons.
While the negotiations continue, attention on the pitch turns to Sevilla’s upcoming league fixture against Elche, which will mark their 20th matchday of the campaign.
The outcome of that game may influence the mood around the club, but the direction of travel over Mendy’s future already seems clear.
If an agreement can be reached, Sevilla will have secured a midfielder who has adapted quickly to Spanish football and who is fully committed to the club’s project.
For a side rebuilding its identity, that combination of reliability and loyalty may prove more valuable than the original €7m price tag ever suggested.
