Hatem Ben Arfa confirms retirement, four years after final Ligue 1 appearance

Hatem Ben Arfa will not join any professional club again. At 39, the former France attacking midfielder confirms his retirement, four years after his final Ligue 1 appearance, ending a career as brilliant as it was erratic.

A return to Nice had nearly materialized last winter. Jean-Pierre Rivère, former OGC Nice president, had attempted to convince “HBA” to lace up his boots again. Having switched to padel, Ben Arfa had never officially announced his retirement, leaving doubt about a possible sporting comeback.

It was at Nice, precisely, that Ben Arfa wrote his finest pages in the league. During the 2015-2016 season, he scored 17 goals in Ligue 1, captivating the entire Gym. His former goalkeeper, Yoan Cardinale, has not forgotten. “When you arrive at half-time of a match, you go see a player to tell him ‘Please, make us win’, and he does it, that’s someone special,” he confides to L’Équipe.

For Cardinale, Ben Arfa remains simply the strongest player he ever played alongside throughout his career. An exceptional talent, but temperamental. “At training, there were good days and bad days,” recalls the former goalkeeper. “When they were good days, we watched him with wide eyes and wondered what he was doing with us.”

Cardinale also remembers a delightful dressing room moment. Before a match, as coach Claude Puel writes the opposing lineup on the board, Ben Arfa stands up and laughs alone in his corner. Asked by his teammates, he replies: “They put that player in central defense! But I’m going to destroy him!” The player in question had indeed been dominated.

Formed at Lyon, having played for Newcastle, Hull City, Marseille, PSG and Rennes, the Clamart native (Hauts-de-Seine) collected 15 France caps. A roller-coaster career, marked by flashes of genius that few players of his generation managed to produce.