da doce： Considering he’s only 25-years-old, it would seem bizarre that Hatem Ben Arfa’s age would be of any real prominence, when dissecting the Frenchman’s career. Indeed, Newcastle United’s prodigious winger has years left ahead of him, including his peak ones, surely destined to be spent in the top flight and perhaps challenging for top honours, too.
da apostaganha： But Ben Arfa’s journey from a raw French wonderkid to an unstoppable Premier League menace, has been an arduous one and in some ways, well overdue. But where as many felt that taking a chance on the former Olympique de Marseille man was a gamble too far, Alan Pardew is now reaping the rewards of his considerable talent.
In this case, perhaps good things do come to those who wait after all. And for all at St. James Park, Hatem Ben Arfa has been most definitely worth that wait.
Match of the Day pundit Alan Shearer was infamously ridiculed in 2010 after uttering the now immortal line, “No one really knows a great deal of him,” upon viewing Ben Arfa’s barnstorming highlight sequence from Newcastle United’s 1-0 win away to Everton. But despite showing remarkable ignorance for a man paid by the taxpayer to display an extensive footballing knowledge, it does in some ways represent quite how much the Hatem Ben Arfa story had stalled at that point.
Because Ben Arfa wasn’t some unknown, mysterious Gaelic talent when he signed for what was at the time, Chris Houghton’s Magpies – initially on loan- in 2010. His Champions League debut in the colours of Lyon serve as a relatively poignant reminder as to quite how long ago it was, when he first burst onto the scene. The scores were evenly matched at 2-2 during Lyon’s tightly contested Group D fixture with Manchester United. As a young, and rakish Ben Arfa came on to replace Sidney Govou, he found himself playing against a United side that started with both Eric Djemba-Djemba in midfield and one Tim Howard in goal. The date was 15th September 2004. Not far off eight years ago now.
And in some respects, it seems really quite remarkable that it has taken the Clamart-born winger so many years to really start fulfilling his true potential.
Because a look at his contemporaries suggests not all has gone quite as planned in the time that’s passed since that Champions League debut. Ben Arfa was widely recognised as one of the biggest hopes of French football if not the biggest, during the mid-noughties. He was the one touted to reinvigorate Les Bleus and gravitate them back towards international success, even more so than his youth team colleague Karim Benzema. Yet today Benzema, a year younger, currently plays for Real Madrid and beholds 52 caps for his country. Ben Arfa has only 13.
Abou Diaby is another of his countrymen who wasn’t of thought to be able to posses quite the levels of talent that Ben Arfa had, yet still has more caps for his country – even with his arguably dire injury record. Yet it is into an old French documentary that ironically featured both Diaby and Ben Arfa as teenagers, in which we get an insight as to quite why the Newcastle winger’s career seems to have taken so long to truly flourish.
In the documentary titled À La Clairefontaine, cameras were allowed into the now famous French footballing hub, where they followed the fortunes of several fleeting young players- including the pair of Diaby and Ben Arfa. And in an excerpt that you can view here, even at a young age, we’re exposed to the volatility that has plagued Ben Arfa’s career.
And unfortunately for both Lyon and French fans, it was seemingly a character trait that Ben Arfa was unable to shed. Clashes with both Benzema and now Arsenal defender Sebastien Squilacci, only weeks after singing a long-term deal at Lyon, put an end to his carer at the Stade de Gerland and signalled the start of a new one at Marseille. But yet again, his career continued to be scorched by an abrasive attitude that has continuously overshadowed his extraordinary talents with a football. Clashes with Modeste Mbami, Djibril Cisse and managers Eric Gerets and Didier Deschamps marred his time at the Stade Velodrome – the latter culminating in Ben Arfa going on strike, resulting in his move to Tyneside. At this point, none of Europe’s top clubs were even thinking about taking a persona like Ben Arfa’s onto the pay reel.
But what was their loss was undeniably Newcastle United’s gain. His first season was of course curtailed almost as soon as it began, after Nigel de Jong’s controversial tackle inflicted a compound fracture of the left leg. But even then, Newcastle had seen enough to turn his loan from Marseille into a permanent move. And since his return to full fitness, he’s not looked back.
Ben Arfa has began to show the sort of form and showcase of ability that made Europe stand up and take notice all those years ago. The Frenchman has a genuine gift and possesses a level of skill that perhaps ranks amongst the highest tier in the league. Alan Pardew has described the winger as having “magic in his feet,” and last season, we finally started to see it appear on a regular basis; he ranked up a highly reputable five goals and seven assists in 26 Premier League games. This season, he already has two goals from four.
By his own admission, Ben Arfa has taken a long time to mature as much as a person as he has a footballer. Indeed, Armand Garrido, a former youth coach at Lyon, once said that he “always thought Hatem was a couple of years behind in some respects.”
But most importantly, Ben Arfa seems to feel in himself that he’s turned the page. Talking before the European Championships this summer, the Frenchman said:
“I’ve evolved, I grew up.
“I am calmer, quieter. In the field, I feel much better. I’m really much more committed to the collective. I think now more than ever, I’m a competitor.
“With experience, it made me better. I give everything now because I am responsible for my actions.”
And with that change in attitude, the only way is surely forward, for both Ben Arfa and Newcastle United. In a strange way, the pair seem to resemble something of a perfect match. Both club and player have had their fair share of issues in recent years. But at full capacity and with no further distractions, they can both help each other to attain the sort of success that their standings deserve.
How do you feel about Ben Arfa’s future on Tyneside? Still worried about his volatile persona or are you confident the problems of the past are behind him? Tell me what you think on Twitter: follow @samuel_antrobus and bat me all your views.