Lionel Messi at OM, it’s confirmed!

Former Olympique de Marseille player, Elinton Andrade is convinced that Hatem Ben Arfa could have had a completely different career with more “discipline”.

Five French championship titles, two Coupe de France, two Coupe de la Ligue and 15 selections for the French team: Hatem Ben Arfa’s career is enough to make people envious. However, it is indeed an impression of waste that predominates when it comes to the former midfielder. New illustration with the comments made by Elinton Andrade, former teammate of Hatem Ben Arfa at Olympique de Marseille.

“He had Messi’s level. Already at a very young age, he had won a lot of championships with Lyon. But afterwards, maybe something changed in his head, I don’t know… But he’s the kind of guy who, 100%, if he had had a slightly more professional mentality, could have gone further,” he confided to Massila Zone. “It’s a shame. He has character, but I think it’s the professional mentality that he lacked. The problem is the discipline of a professional or the discipline of an athlete. It’s not just the player…”

A huge waste

The former Brazilian goalkeeper is not the first to point out the gap between the Clamart native’s abilities and his career. “When I spotted him and his parents trusted me, I was convinced that I had in my possession a player, if we worked on his mental strength, who would be a future Ballon d’Or winner because he had so much talent. It will remain a huge waste, it is perhaps THE waste of 21st century football,” explained about him Frédéric Guerra, his first agent.

“His mentor, Michel Ouazine (his advisor and representative, editor’s note), only told him that talent was enough,” he regretted, adding: “Cristiano Ronaldo became a huge worker very early on, someone who always questioned himself. Karim Benzema had exactly the same journey. These are people who told themselves that to reach the top, you had to work, work, work. And that talent was not enough.”