A little reminder of who Adrien Tameze is:
He is a French footballer born in Lille. He started his career in clubs in the Lille region before signing with AS Nancy-Lorraine. He played two French cup matches there in 2013. Released at the end of an unrenewed contract, Adrien Tameze returned to northern France. He had a successful trial at Valenciennes, a Ligue 2 club, in 2005.
He initially played in CFA2, until July 2015 when he finally signed his first professional contract with the club for a period of 3 years. He scored his first goal on July 31 of the same year, against Red Star FC. He became a full-fledged starter for the team. Unfortunately, he lost his place in the second half of the season after fourteen matches. During his second season, he once again became a key player for the Nordists’ starting eleven. He quickly caught the attention of several clubs. Ultimately, it was OGCN that recruited him at the opening of the summer transfer window on June 9, 2017.
Interview with Adrien Tameze, President Rivère as well as coach Lucien Favre.
What do you know about Adrien, Coach Favre?
Not much, I’ve talked with him since he arrived, little by little. I knew he played at Valenciennes, I watched some footage of that club. As President Rivère said, “he is a player with quality, and we will need to work with him.”
We have already talked about some details, we are working on them more and more. What is interesting is that Adrien has real potential to develop.
It will take a little time, but the most important thing is that he has the potential and the willingness to progress.
It is an important step for him, he was at Valenciennes in D2. Now, he is here at Nice. It is somewhat different. He has undeniable quality, at least from what we see. We haven’t done a 10 against 10 or 11 against 11 match yet but.
Adrien, how do you pronounce your first name?
It’s Tameze, it is written as Tamèze, but pronounced Tameze.
Why did you choose GYM, Adrien?
It’s a club that has only been growing for several years, with also an impressive quality of play throughout the season. It was also important for me to join a team that plays good football. Coming from Ligue 2 and joining a Ligue 1 club is not really easy. It certainly helps to be in a team that plays good football, especially with everything being prepared here in Nice.
Were you aware that the club was following you?
I found out a bit towards the end because I had “arranged” with my agents that I needed to focus on my season. I didn’t want too many details about which clubs were following me. They informed me when it was really concrete. That’s when I knew they had been following me for a while.
Adrien, did you follow GYM’s season last year, which was kind of a surprise in Ligue 1?
Of course, in Ligue 1, there aren’t many teams that make you want to watch them, aside from PSG and Monaco, club-wise. But this year, there was Nice, which was very pleasant to watch, so I followed them. I also have friends who followed the club’s season.
Adrien, there are many players in the midfield this year, doesn’t that put a bit of pressure on you?
Uh, I haven’t thought too much about it, no, because first, I think about my progression. As I mentioned earlier, I think that here there is everything to progress: the conditions, the staff, and then a quality squad. I mainly thought about my progression because I know that here I am going to progress.
Coach, have you already thought about using Adrien Tameze in a certain playing system?
No, not yet, we haven’t had the opportunity to discuss that. It’s only been 3 days since we came back.
Regarding his abilities?
He is an axial midfielder without question, responds Lucien Favre, who can play either as a 6 or 8. Something like that. He needs to be versatile.
Adrien, what do you expect from playing in Ligue 1 in a few days?
I expect there to be a difference in terms of intensity and the impact of duels, but other than that I don’t have too much apprehension about it. I am going to go through my preparation, take things step by step. I think it’s going to go well, at least I hope it goes well.
Being transferred to a Ligue 1 club that will play in the Champions League, isn’t that a big step up?
It’s sure that it could be worse, I was one of the first surprised when I heard that they were interested in me. I am happy, it’s a source of pride, and it encourages me even more to move forward.
You experienced a difficult period in June 2014, you said at that time that you didn’t have the right behavior, what do you mean by that?
In a word, the maturity that I think I have attained today. It was mostly a period that allowed me to grow because when you’re unemployed, it’s not easy. I tried to bounce back at Valenciennes, which I think I did well. I am arriving at Nice today, I think I must continue on this path.
