Two late recruits arrived this winter, Mounir Obbadi from LOSC and Bassem Srarfi, from the Club Africain in Tunisia. Lucien Favre presented them to the press yesterday at the Allianz Riviera.
Who is Bassem Srarfi? This young Tunisian was, as of Tuesday, still mired in a convoluted situation. Lille thought they had signed the player, but he reiterated at the press conference yesterday, “it was a no. I wanted to come here, to Nice.” From now on, there is no question of involving him in that story. He is now fully focused on the Côte d’Azur capital. His coach, Lucien Favre, describes him as very good in one-on-one situations, very fast, and capable of playing all across the attack—both as a second striker and on the wings. Though he prefers the right wing being left-footed, he likes to cut in on his stronger foot. The 19-year-old forward knows he has taken a step forward by coming to France and was motivated, notably, by Hatem Ben Arfa, of Tunisian origin, who had an excellent season last year with GYM.
At 33, Mounir Obbadi is set to bring his extensive experience to this young Nice midfield (average age 22). But that’s not all; Lucien Favre has thoroughly researched him. “I signed him for his experience, yes, it will be very useful to us, that’s what we were missing. But of course, also for his level of play—this wasn’t a random choice, we’ve done a lot of research on him, and his profile fits perfectly.” Regarding the derby on Saturday against AS Monaco, his former club, the Moroccan does not want to rush things. “I’m in the squad, but I’ve just returned from Gabon (Africa Cup of Nations), so I need to prepare well.”
