Hatem Ben Arfa has found a club! The former Parisian, without an employer since the end of last season, signed up for six months with Valladolid, current sixteenth in the Spanish championship.
The low prestige of this Spanish club may surprise in the measure that Ben Arfa had the profile to seduce more upscale clubs. But what made the difference in the spirit of the former Rennes, is the name of the owner of the club: the Brazilian Ronaldo, 51% shareholder of the club. And the prospect of working with the idol of his childhood was enough to tip the scales.
Aligned from Saturday in Mallorca?
Ben Arfa has long dreamed of playing in the Spanish championship. He had been on the shelves of Betis Seville but the Frenchman, who works only "by feeling", had not followed up. As he had not studied the interest of the president of FC Nantes, Waldemar Kita, a few weeks ago. By his own admission, he favored envy over financial choice. In the meantime, he had mainly focused on his financial conflict with PSG.
Hatem Ben Arfa has not played in competition for more than eight months. Physically, he says he is rather sharp because he continued to train alone with a physical trainer. But nothing can replace the matches and he should logically be out of rhythm.
Valladolid, in difficulty in its championship, needs its new recruit immediately. He should therefore be aligned this Saturday against Mallorca.