“You will not be missed in football”: Hatem Ben Arfa tackles Jean-Michel Aulas after his departure from OL

2023-05-08 17:09:05

The two best players of the 1987 generation of Olympique Lyonnais do not have the same opinion of their former president Jean-Michel Aulas, a few hours after the announcement of his departure from the presidency of Olympique Lyonnais after 36 years of reign. If the Ballon d’Or Fifa-France-Football 2022 Karim Benzema paid a strong tribute to his former boss on his Instagram account, Hatem Ben Arfa does not have good memories of Jean-Michel Aulas. “Football will not miss you. Goodbye, ”wrote the former player of the France team (15 caps, 2 goals) now 36 years old who has not found a club since leaving Lille in 2022.

Hatem Ben Arfa did not spare Jean-Michel Aulas on Instagram. Capture.

The falling out between the two dates back to 2008. Champion for the 4th time in a row with OL, the “Best hopeful player” of the 2007-2008 season during the UNFP Trophies then decided to leave his training club to go to Om. The Marseille club announced at the end of June that an agreement had been reached with Lyon for the transfer of HBA. Three days later, Olympique Lyonnais declared in a press release that negotiations had been halted because the absence of certain elements necessary for the transfer would not allow the latter to be effective before the “deadline” set by OL in June 30th.

The next day, Hatem Ben Arfa assures that he signed in Marseille and that he will not return to Lyon, thus opposing the injunction formulated by Olympique Lyonnais. After a meeting under the aegis of the LFP’s legal committee, attended by Jean-Michel Aulas, Pape Diouf (then president of OM) and the player himself, the final elements of the transfer are settled and the LFP approves the transfer. Hatem Ben Arfa had delivered his explanations on the reasons which pushed Jean-Michel Aulas to reconsider the agreement reached with Pape Diouf during the press conference of his arrival on the Canebière. “Lyon tried to sell me to Real Madrid rather than OM,” he said. They thought it would be advantageous for them because Real would pay the signing bonus that I was supposed to collect. My objective was clear. I wanted to go to Marseilles. Anyway, I would have quit football if it hadn’t happened like that. »