Hatem Ben Arfa: PSG's forgotten man

April 2016, Hatem Ben Arfa was in line for Ligue 1 Player of the season award, just a year after being outcast and hauled out on loan to Hull City by Alan Pardew. He had the best season of his career while at Nice scoring 17 times in 34 Ligue 1 appearances. 

Hatem Ben Arfa 2015/2016 statistics

But for some reason, he left Nice in the summer of 2016 to join a PSG team with so many players in his position, a move which has since backfired. Since Joining PSG, Hatem Ben Arfa has made only 9 starts for the Parisian Club, and has not played a game for PSG since April 5.

Hatem Ben Arfa's PSG exile is so severe that his friend, Sylvian Idanger, former Lyon man has claimed that it is taking its toll on his mental health..

He fears the lack of game time is seriously affecting Ben Arfa and is concerned about his friend.

Idanger told L'Equipe: ‘I was afraid that old demons had returned and that he breaks down. I am worried all the time.

‘What upsets me the most in this difficult period, is when we are the only two at the restaurant and he does not tell me that it is not OK, whereas I know, I can sense that he is not well.'

He added: 'He suffers in silence, it takes over him and he does not say anything about himself.

‘In fact, Hatem, is one of the favourites in the dressing room, but the players don’t want to say it.’ 

Ben Arfa was demoted to the reserve team in September and threatened legal action on the club. His lawyer Jean-Jacques Bertrand previously said: 'Legally, I think the club is violating the Professional Football Charter.'

He has now returned to train with the first team but having started just nine matches since moving from Nice in 2016, it could be argued that Ben Arfa's frustrations are not without foundation. 

It seems his departure in the next transfer window is inevitable as the technically gifted forward looks to nail down regular games and revive his ailing career.

So what next for Ben Arfa?