What can we say about the transfer window as it currently stands?

Our three recruits (Danilo, Hérelle and Atal) are pleasing everybody, in my opinion, and will be good replacements for those who have left, or are on the verge of leaving. Now we have to look to complete the squad. We know exactly where we are at. We need to bring in two forwards. We hope to finalise this as soon as possible. The files are complex and you have to admit that not being in Europe is a handicap when looking to attract certain players. Especially because at Nice, our our approach doesn’t change: we always look above what we are theoretically capable of doing. For that reason, it takes a little bit longer than recruiting an average player, or stops us from paying a ridiculous price in the process.

After the arrival of Ben Arfa (2015), Dante, Balotelli and Belhanda (2016) and Sneijder (2017), do you feel pressure from the fans during this summer window?

We have allowed them to become accustomed to “coups” in recent seasons, but to be honest, we aren’t in this place this summer. We are not going to pull “a surprise” out of the hat. Our priority is to build the most balanced and competitive team possible.  

Does the uncertainty around Mario Balotelli’s situation complicate things? 

A bit. But we are doing our work, it doesn’t block anything. I will speak about Mario once the transfer window has closed.

"We expected Souquet to move on, because we weren’t able to meet the conditions his agent had asked for"

The departure of three members of the squad right at the start of the transfer window, has this helped things in terms of building the squad? 

During a transfer window, you have wishes in terms of buying and selling. The earlier you sell, the better you can work, especially when everything is expected. To replace Seri, we targeted Danilo. We have been following him for years and talking with him for months. Last year, we were already thinking about Christophe Herelle to take over from Le Marchand. Then, we had the opportunity with Atal, and we went for it. Souquet is a very good player, he has a great attitude, but his agent came to us in the Autumn explaining that he would need a significant increase in his salary, if not, he would leave. So we expected his departure, because we weren’t able to meet the conditions his agent had asked for.

Have you been asked about members of the squad whose departures weren’t planned?

Of course, and we closed the door on them. When players arrive, we have a rule, everybody knows it: we offer contracts for 4 or 5 years and the first two of those years, we don’t move, except for a couple of exceptions. Some players have attracted interest, we have received offers, and we didn’t respond to them. For Alassane, we game him a verbal agreement. He always behaved in an exemplary manner with us, an opportunity presented itself, he wanted to go to ‘Gladbach and it happened. We could have got more money in England, but you also have to respect the aspirations of the players.

"We plan our sales"

Some decent mark-ups have been achieved during this window...  

On one hand, you have to be careful with the figures spoken about in the press. It doesn’t always correspond with the reality. On the other hand, there are amounts that have to be taken away from the figures: agents fees, player profit sharing, training indemnity and sometimes, a portion due to his former club. Take the example of Alassane Plea. Not having the means to meet the demands of Lyon, we agreed a deal for 750,000 euros, with 20% of the resale value returning to them. It’s a win-win deal. You also have to remember that the payments are spread across several years, be it for a sale or a purchase. We are expecting a drop in revenue given the absence of European football. It’s a loss of around 17 million euros compared to 2017-18 (10 from the Champions League qualifying and 7 from the Europa League, Editor’s note). Our revenue will be around 50 million this season. Our finances are healthy. They will allow us to bring in quality players, but with a little less latitude on the top earners.   

The Gym have strengthened in recent seasons and are no longer required to sell at the beginning of every transfer window...

When we say that, the mechanism is the following: there is often a deficit between the income and the expenditure. Nearly all clubs cover that with players sales. In football, the financial year ends on 30 June. That means right in the middle of the transfer market. In order to not need to sell our players before this date, we plan our sales one year before. Dalbert was sold in the year which ended in June 2018. The sales that we have made in recent weeks, will impact on the financials in June 2019, and, in part, those in 2020. All of this gives a real sense of serenity. 

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