Olympique de Marseille: Droit au But

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TRANSFER DEADLINE DAY

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The transfer window has now shut for clubs in Ligue 1, with Paris Saint-Germain unsurprisingly involved in the biggest deals of the day. Paulo Oliveira was the man arriving at the Parc des Princes in a deal worth £27 million to his former club Sporting Lisbon. The deal was funded by a massive departure though as Matias Kranevitter, the Argentine playmaker, departed Paris for pastures new in Munich as FC Bayern secured a £27.5 million move for the midfielder. PSG also saw Marcos Alonso depart and return home to Spain as Sevilla were on hand to secure the full backs signature.

Olympique de Marseille were also involved in two big deals as Clinton N’Jie arrived at the Stade Velodrome on a season long loan deal from Tottenham Hotspur after only making 19 league appearances in two seasons in North London. Christophe Galtier also secured the signing of Chaker Alhadhur as cover at full back from Stade Malherbe Caen for a small fee of £2.5 million.

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NEW ARRIVAL: CLINTON N’JIE INTERVIEW

After completing his deadline day loan move to the Stade Velodrome from Tottenham Hotspur, new L’OM forward Clinton N’Jie is no stranger to Ligue 1. During the 2014-2015 season the forward scored 7 times and assisted 7 goals for the Olympique Lyonnais side that finished second in Ligue 1 to eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain and the Cameroon striker says he is raring to go at Olympique de Marseille.

FRANCE FOOTBALL: ”I guess the first thing to say, is welcome back to Ligue 1 Clinton! How does it feel to be back in the country, even if it is for a different team this time?”

CLINTON N’JIE: ”It’s great, having watched a lot of French football as a kid, and having had such a good time in the league before in my career, it’s nice to be back and I can’t wait to get started.”

FF: ”That’s good to know. Let’s crack on with this interview then shall we? Obviously it’s commonly accepted that the reasoning behind your loan move here is because of the lack of football you were given at Tottenham. You only made 13 league appearances in your first season in London, whilst you only made a single appearance all season for Tottenham last season? Just how frustrating was that for you?”

N’JIE: ”Yeah of course it was incredibly frustrating. I’m 24 now and felt like I ought to be at a club where I was going to be really challenging for a place in the first team week in week out, and I just wasn’t going to get that at Tottenham.”

FF: ”Why do you think that was though, Clinton? What was your relationship with Mauricio Pochettino like during your time there?”

N’JIE: ”My relationship with the manager was great and it still is. He’s kept in touch since my move here, even though it’s only been a few weeks. Sometimes in football things just don’t work out how you’d like them too. Mauricio felt it necessary to bring in players where I could play which for him obviously pushed me down the pecking order, which was frustrating but when you look at the quality of players in that squad, with the likes of Erik Lamela, Christian Eriksen, Viktor Fischer it was always going to be difficult. It would be difficult for them, players that are established player in football, whereas I’ve only really had one season of regular football so I do understand it, I just wish it had gone differently.”


Mauricio Pochettino and Clinton N’Jie discuss his role in the team during his solitary appearance for Tottenham last season.

FF: ”What was the thought process behind your move to Marseille then? What do you hope to prove at the Stade Velodrome?”

N’JIE: ”Marseille are a huge side, in French football and in European football and under Christophe Galtier a lot of people think they’re definitely going places. Hopefully I can a lot here, there’s a bunch of talented players going for the same position as I am, but the manager clearly believes I’m up to scratch otherwise he wouldn’t have signed me. Hopefully the appearances will keep coming and the goals can start coming soon after. If that goes well then hopefully I’ll be still here come next season or back at Spurs competing for first team football next year!”

FF: ”Marseille came very close to winning the league last year and so far this season have made a very encouraging start, do you think you and the rest of the squad can go all the way this year?”

N’JIE: ”I don’t see why not. I’ve already said it that we have an incredibly talented squad this season, with some really special players like Michy Batshuayi and Islam Slimani up front, and if we can all keep firing this season, then we can go all the way. The lads proved last year they were capable of challenging they just need that extra push. The manager’s bought in some high class players this summer and hopefully they can add that extra touch of quality to the side to take us all the way.

FF: ”How will it feel going up against Lyon in competitive matches this year? The club did a lot for you, will it be emotional returning to play the club that essentially made you a first team footballer?”

N’JIE: ”Yeah of course it’s not going to be easy to return. They’re a huge club and the games already have a massive meaning between the two so to play in those games for the opposition probably won’t go down the best with the Lyon fans but hopefully they’ll remember how much I love that club.”


The forward come winger celebrates after scoring one of his 7 goals for Lyon in the 2014-2015 season.

FF: ”I think that is all then Clinton. Thank you very much, good luck for the season ahead.”

N’JIE: ”Thank you very much!