Hatem Ben Arfa, a Frenchman, now plays for French club Lille but was recently kicked off the team after a fight with manager Jocelyn Gourvennec. He is 35 years old, well into his sunset years, and his career has been marred by uncertainty. He is the face of the “what might have been” movement because he had incredible raw talent but never seemed to realize its full potential.
Ben Arfa once remarked that, had his career gone in a different route, he “could’ve been like Lionel Messi.” Ben Arfa was a gifted player with the potential to be among the best in the world in a different era. Despite this, he was unable to dominate football despite his skill with the ball in his hands.
Young person Ben Arfa attended INF Clairefontaine, the premier football academy in France. He was the primary figure in the 2002 documentary A La Clairefontaine because of his famous altercation with Abou Diaby, a fellow academy member at the time. But at this young age, he won the U17 European Championship with France alongside Samir Nasri and Karim Benzema, earning him the respect of French football experts. He then made his way onto the Lyon team, which at the time was the strongest force in France and became the first youngster to play in Ligue 1 in the twenty-first century, being quickly followed by Benzema.
He emerged as a teenage sensation at Lyon. When he was playing with Juninho and Benzema, it was obvious he had a rare kind of natural potential. Despite his early success and promising future, it was obvious that he would never become one of OL’s A-list athletes. Despite having a respectable season in 2007, Ben Arfa transferred to Marseille the following year.
Throughout his time in France, a common motif emerged. Despite winning the Young Player of the Year award and five Ligue 1 championships, his time in his own nation was tarnished by missed practices, altercations on the practice field, and public disagreements. His career was marked by the scandals at Marseille and Lyon, which hung over him like a heavy shadow and prevented him from reaching his full potential.
Even though Ben Arfa struggled in numerous situations, his time at Newcastle United seems to hold the most treasured memories for him, especially in the eyes of the city’s supporters.
