Mohamed Amoura wanted to join OGC Nice, but concerns about racism in the city and around the club reportedly had to be addressed before the Algeria international agreed to the move.
The forward was said to have sought reassurance about Nice’s reputation, which in France is sometimes associated with the far right and xenophobia. That image is a reductive one when applied to an entire city or all of its residents, but it had become established enough to influence Amoura’s thinking during negotiations.
Roger Ricort, OGC Nice’s sporting director, described the unusual discussions that took place before the transfer in an interview with Nice-Matin.
“We had to convince him because he had heard that people in Nice are racist. We made sure that this information was not confirmed and was denied,” Ricort said.
His comments suggest that Nice had to persuade Amoura on issues extending beyond the sporting and financial aspects of the proposed deal.
Amoura eventually joined OGC Nice from Wolfsburg on loan, with a non-compulsory option to buy estimated at €20m.
The Algerian also had two trusted contacts who could offer a personal view of the club: Youcef Atal and Hicham Boudaoui, his international team-mates who know Nice well.
Amoura said both players encouraged him to accept the move.
“Hicham and Atal told me that the club is magnificent, that everything is here and that I could succeed,” he said.
Atal’s support carried particular significance given his own difficult experience at Nice. The former full-back endured an extremely tense period in 2023 after sharing a social media post during the war in Gaza.
He was suspended by the club and later faced legal proceedings. After deleting the post and apologising, Atal was ultimately convicted. The episode was regarded by a significant part of the Algerian public as an especially severe response.
Nice had also been shaken by allegations involving Christophe Galtier. His former sporting director, Julien Fournier, accused him of making discriminatory comments about the origins or religion of some players, with Hicham Boudaoui’s name reportedly mentioned in the case.
Galtier has always denied the allegations. He was eventually acquitted at first instance, with the court ruling that the alleged offences had not been sufficiently established.
Those incidents do not, in themselves, justify labelling OGC Nice or its supporters as a whole. However, they help explain why concerns about racism may have had particular importance for Amoura before he committed to the club.
On the pitch, the move appears to have been a clear choice for the Algeria international. He reportedly resisted late interest from Lyon in order to join Nice.
His immediate challenge is now sporting: Amoura must rediscover his scoring form after a lengthy spell without finding the net and attempt to relaunch his career in Ligue 1.