Insufficient resources, internal conflicts, interest in Chelsea… Behind the conflict between Julien Fournier and Christophe Galtier on sports policy, there is a real question: what does INEOS really want to do with OGC Nice?
Nothing is going well in Nice. While the season could turn to failure on Saturday, if the team does not finish in the top 5 (and even then, a fifth place will barely save it), strong tensions accompany the spring of the Aiglons. And not only between the director of football, Julien Fournier, and Christophe Galtier.
In fact, no one is happy. Jim Ratcliffe in the first place. Beyond the point lost on the green carpet, the big boss of INEOS did not appreciate seeing the image of his club tarnished by the events caused by a fringe of supporters: the episode of the bottle of water and the invasion of the pitch against OM (3th day of Ligue 1), and, almost even worse, the affair of the song of shame ten days ago after the defeat in the final of the Coupe de France.
An internal audit in progress at OGC Nice
Disappointed with the results, the club owner is also unhappy with the way the club has operated this season, and has ordered an audit. The relationship between Julien Fournier and Christophe Galtier is particularly dissected, through the decisions taken (particularly in terms of transfers), in an attempt to develop the club.
The differences of view between Fournier and Galtier are no longer a secret to anyone. When the coach wanted to recover experienced players, the director of football preferred to invest in promising young talents. This is how Billal Brahimi (substitute in Angers) arrived in January, without Galtier’s agreement. The name of Juan Mata had circulated…
This does not mean that Julien Fournier and the former LOSC coach will no longer be together next season. According to our information, the hypothesis is not excluded. Fournier has in particular Bob Ratcliffe, the brother of Jim, director of football for INEOS, on his side (without the latter being against Galtier).
Jim, he, like Jean-Pierre Rivère, supports 200% Christophe Galtier. Today, the coach’s message is clear: if Nice really wants to aim for the Champions League in the long term, they have to invest more, and better.
INEOS ready to put 5 billion on Chelsea and not 100 million in Nice
It is on this subject that the supporters of OGC Nice are beginning to ask themselves serious, logical questions about INEOS. A fortnight ago, the announcement of an offer of several billion from INEOS to buy Chelsea (we talked about 5 billion euros), shocked the people of Nice. “If INEOS can put billions in Chelsea, it can well put a hundred million more in Nice for transfers”ask the followers.
The reflection is more than logical and tumbles on this question: what is INEOS playing? This season, Nice’s budget was 90 million euros, i.e. the 7th Ligue 1 budget. Even if the club has spent 55 million on transfers (including summer and winter transfer windows), it is far, very far, from being enough to compete with the podium clubs (250 million for OM, 215 million for Monaco), and it is even below Rennes (110 million) which spent nearly 80 million on the transfer market…
INEOS accused of selling dreams to the people of Nice
If Jim Ratcliffe (and INEOS) wanted to reassure everyone about his commitment to OGC Nice, the attacks are starting to flare up, accusing INEOS of having sold the dream to the people of Nice. The coming summer could do damage, without anyone really knowing who will remain standing.
When INEOS arrived in Nice in 2019, Bob Ratcliffe announced “a 3 to 5-year project to make Nice a club that can regularly arrive at European level, and stay there”.
In three months and eleven days, it will be three years. If OGC Nice qualified for the Europa League in the first year (and was, moreover, ridiculous), taking advantage of a season truncated by the COVID (tied with Reims and a point ahead of Lyon), it has then finished 9th last season and just missed a great opportunity to win a trophy, before perhaps settling for 6th or 7th place…
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