We called him to speak about the clash between the Gym and Angers, the club he belongs to and the club where he made his first loan (6 months during the 2015/16 season). The discussion quickly changed topics with Saïd Benrahma (22 years old) not "really" following the evolution of SCO. So we simply spoke with him. About his incredible season with Châteauroux, about his various experiences, his love for OGC Nice. Truthful and without a filter - like on the pitch - the Algerian international has matured, but without losing his freshness. So we spoke and spoke... We had a great time. 

"This season is doing me so much good" 

Saïd, how are you doing? 

My season is going very well, I am playing, I am having fun. We are a bit disappointed because we have lost two on the trot, but we are still in the running (Châteauroux are currently in 8th place in L2, with 51 points). We will get going again and will give our all to try to get into the play-offs. In all competitions, I have scored 9 goals (4 assists in the league) and I am really enjoying myself. I needed it. Needed it to be ready…

3 buts au compteur ce mois-ci pour Said Benrahma !
Il fait partie des nommés pour le Trophée du joueur du mois de février @DominosLigue2.
Votez pour lui sur https://t.co/7j58y5maif#TropheesUNFP pic.twitter.com/SVZglT0kCu

— UNFP (@UNFP) 2 mars 2018

We get the feeling that you are happy…

This season is doing me a lot of good. Physically, I feel really in form. I am lucky to be playing back to back matches, I have freedom, I am expressing myself (he was voted 2nd best player for the month of February by UNFP). The coach (Jean-Luc Vasseur) and the club have put me in the best of conditions. They have confidence in me, I have to pay them back, I am knuckling down. Last year, the 6 months that I spent GFC Ajaccio allowed me to discover L2. I liked my time there but, unfortunately, I got injured and I missed games. It was a good experience but it wasn't enough. I needed to back it up and to spend another season in L2. A season like this.  

When you are an attacking player, is L2 more complicated than L1?

L1 is more intense: L2 is more physical, more compact. It is more back to basics, you need to know how to hold on and battle. The referees don't blow for fouls, you need to be solid in your head. You need to battle because anybody can beat anybody. Before it was tough, but now it's going better. I have got used to it. 

"I play like an adult"

Do you still follow the Gym? 

Of course! I watch the games every time I can. The second half of the season is very good. Now, the team is coming back very well, thanks notably to Alassane (Plea). He has had a great month and he deserves it, he is a worker. So yes, I follow them because not only do I belong to the Gym, but I love this club.

 

Les pic.twitter.com/p46QyvVu3n

— saidbenrahma11 (@Benrahma2) 25 juillet 2016

Why?

Because the Gym gave me everything, and not only in football. In Nice, I feel at home, even though I am not from here. I say it now and will say it again in 10 years time. What I have had here, I wouldn't have had anywhere else. People had confidence in me, and to have confidence from a club like this, that's not given to everyone. I had some lows, I haven't done everything well, but there has always been that confidence, even during my various loans. The Gym will always be the club I support, it's my club. No matter what happens in the future. Julien Fournier and Claude Puel helped me. Manu Pires, Jean-Philippe Mattio, Régis Beunardeau, Thierry Malaspina too. And then thankfully there was coach Bonadei during the period when things were going less well... These are the reasons why I feel what I feel for the club. I could never be grateful enough.    

And in your game?  

The same. Nice have helped me to build my game. Leaving allowed me to take a step back and to think about certain things. I will give you an example. Before, coach Puel gave me lots of advice, forced me to make the effort, to make myself hurt. I struggled to understand that playing with just your quality isn't enough. I think about it every time, now the effort has become natural. You could say that I play like an adult now.

C.D.

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