At 29, Jordan Veretout will be traveling to Qatar with the France team to compete in its first World Cup (November 20-December 18). Asked Wednesday by Provencethe Olympique de Marseille midfielder welcomed the news with happiness and a little astonishment too. “If you had told me that I would be selected for the World Cup three weeks, a month ago, I would have said no. »
If supporters of Benjamin André or Tanguy Ndombele can find fault with this choice of Didier Deschamps, the coach justified it on Tuesday when his list was announced. Listening to him, Veretout found “a very good level” after a difficult start at Olympique de Marseille and “bring sufficient guarantees” in a depopulated sector with the packages of Paul Pogba and N’Golo Kanté.
But, far from all these sporting considerations, the presence of Veretout indirectly raises the question of the double role of Bachir Néhar, intendant of the Blues and employed as “team manager”, since 2020, of V.V. Consulting, the sports consulting and management agency created by Vadim Vasilyev, Russian businessman and former vice-president of AS Monaco. And this is not the first time.
Stéphane Canard, the president of the Union of French Sports Agents (UASF), the union of licensed agents of the French Football Federation (FFF), had expressed his dissatisfaction to the director general of the FFF, Florence, in February 2021. Hardouin, in an e-mail dated February 5, about the situation of Mr. Néhar. “The presence in the staff of Didier Deschamps of Mr. Bachir Néhar constitutes a major conflict of interest which you must put an end to urgently”, pointed out Mr. Duck in this email that The world had consulted. These summons remained without effect.
Known for being close to Didier Deschamps, Bachir Néhar, who signed in July 2020 a CDD at the French Football Federation (FFF) until the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, is still in office. “His function in this company is therefore not incompatible with his missions as steward within the France team. In addition, none of the players who are members of the France A and U23 teams are affiliated with the agent company mentioned,” had specified to World the FFF in December 2021.
A weakened line of defense
“ The company that employs Mr. Néhar is not contractually bound to any player playing in the France U23 team or first team, a sine qua non condition for the accumulation of activity authorized by the French Federation. »added Mr. Néhar’s lawyer, Romain Vanni.
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