Tuesday meeting brings no joy for Hatem Ben Arfa
Hatem Ben Arfa was disappointed yet again today as there was no resolution to his non-playing problem.
A meeting took place this morning between the legal committee of the LFP (French Football League) and Nice’s Chief Executive Julien Fournier & Hatem Ben Arfa’s representative Jean-Jacques Bertrand.
Dispute still rumbling on as to whether a Newcastle Under 21 match in August counts as playing for Newcastle this season, thus disqualifying him from playing for Nice until August as he has also played for Hull, which would make it the two clubs maximum in a season if the Under 21 game counts.
However, the meeting broke up with no concrete conclusion, despite Nice and the player hoping that the fact that the English FA had forwarded Ben Arfa’s international transfer certificate to the LFP, via the FFF (French Football Federation) would be sufficient.
Instead, the LFP have bounced it back again to the FFF and asked them to get FIFA’s ‘Player status committee’ to give a definitive decision.
A statement on Nice’s official website read;
“There’s no decision today regarding approval for Hatem Ben Arfa’s contract.
“The French international, who remains in Nice training for the derby (v Marseille – Ben Arfa’s old club) with his team-mates, is in a state of limbo.
“The League (LFP) would like the international federation (FIFA) to express an official position before it makes its decision. To that end, the LFP has asked the FFF to communicate with FIFA’s Player Status Committee.”
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