He therefore still plays football and therefore prefers to take the North than the path of retirement. Attacking midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa, free of any contract since leaving Bordeaux last summer, signed on Wednesday with Lille (L1) until the end of the season, the club said in a statement.
“Losc announces the arrival at the club of Hatem Ben Arfa (34 years old). The French international midfielder (15 caps, 2 goals) signed a 6-month contract today which binds him to the Lille club until the end of the 2021-2022 season, ”writes the French champion on his website. .
This press release is not a surprise as the arrival of the ex-Parisian had been in the northern pipes for several days. “I am very happy to have signed in Lille, explains Ben Arfa. It’s a team that has shown great things this year. It’s a club that has been growing for a few years and it’s a pleasure to take up this challenge and help this team. My goal is to get back to competition. I feel very good and ready. As I am a football lover, I can’t wait to come back. I feel very good in my body”.
In Lille, Hatem Ben Arfa will find Olivier Létang whom he knew at PSG and who had also enlisted him in Rennes. The two men know and like each other. “He is a very ambitious person, confirms Ben Arfa about his president. It’s something we have in common. We are also very competitive. It’s great to work with him again” Ben Arfa’s arrival was validated by Lille coach Jocelyn Gourvennec. “The coach told me what he expected of me on and off the pitch. It went very well during a long conversation. »