da esoccer bet： The France forward showed flashes of brilliance during his career, but he never showed the consistency required to make it at the highest level

da marjack bet： Ever since his rise to stardom at Lyon, Hatem Ben Arfa has generated headlines around the world for good and bad reasons. The attacking midfielder has represented a total of 10 clubs across a bizarre career that started with so much promise, but has fizzled out into free agency at the age of 37.

The 15-time France international is not officially retired, but he has been without a club since a dismal six-month spell at Lille ended in 2022, and it is hard to imagine him making a return to the game considering his age and his reputation as a difficult figure.

His wealth of potential once saw him named one of the most exciting prospects in Europe and, although he is largely seen as a wasted talent, his thrilling demonstrations of skill on the pitch and his controversial status off of it earned him cult-hero status.

So, what's the story behind Ben Arfa's unusual rise and fall, and why is he one of those beloved footballers that the streets will simply never forget? GOAL dives into the highs and lows of a talent once coveted by many of the world's top teams…

GettyBursting onto the scene with Benzema

Even before he arrived on the big stage to confirm his status as one of his country's most promising young players, Ben Arfa had already made himself infamous. In 2002, when he was just 15 years old, he was already well known for his antics during a documentary series that focused on the famed Clairefontaine youth academy. He was a prominent figure in the series and blew up in an argument in front of the cameras with Abou Diaby, who went on to shine for Arsenal.

So, by the time a 17-year-old Ben Arfa was promoted to the Lyon first team alongside fellow prospect Karim Benzema, he was already considered a fiery but exciting rising star. Ben Arfa overshadowed future Ballon d'Or winner – and similarly controversial – youth hero Benzema in the early stages of their career, as he was handed his senior debut over six months earlier than Benzema, featuring in the reigning Ligue 1 champions' opening game of the 2004-05 season.

He impressed enough to feature in the next six matches, which included a 15-minute appearance in a 2-2 draw with Manchester United in the Champions League. He was, however, still a bit too fresh to be trusted as a first-team regular and soon dropped out of the team, though he did return for a brief appearance in the Champions League quarter-finals against PSV.

It wasn't really until his third season as a member of the senior team that Ben Arfa really took off. Florent Malouda's 2007 move to Chelsea opened up more opportunities for the academy product and he grabbed them with his feisty, flair-filled flourishes. He scored eight times in 43 appearances in 2007-08, helping Lyon to yet another Ligue 1 title, while he played in all eight of their Champions League matches as they made it to the last 16 before losing to United.

By then, the limelight was dominated by his old academy co-star Benzema, who smashed in a whopping 31 goals in 52 matches that season. Still, it was Ben Arfa who was named the Young Player of the Year by the players' union in France.

AdvertisementGettyFlash in the pan for Les Bleus

Ben Arfa looked the real deal once he was given a proper chance at Lyon, so it was no surprise when Raymond Domenech called him up to the France squad at the age of 20. Fresh off their 2006 World Cup final defeat that saw Zinedine Zidane sent off for that spectacular headbutt on Marco Materazzi, Les Bleus were in the need for fresh talent to prove a bright future lay ahead for the national team.

The Lyon starlet immediately impressed, scoring on his debut after coming off the bench against Faroe Islands. Ben Arfa would feature in their next four matches, including a game against Spain, before making his first start and providing an assist in a 2-0 win against Ecuador. Sadly, though, he rarely featured from then on, and missed out on the squad for Euro 2008.

Ben Arfa was not able to string together a run of national-team appearances again until the build-up to Euro 2012 as he was named in the final squad. The dream of playing on the big European stage turned into a nightmare, though, as he reportedly asked manager Laurent Blanc to send him home from the tournament because he was infuriated at being substituted in their third group game against Sweden. Ben Arfa further outraged Blanc by speaking on his mobile phone in the dressing room, so naturally, he was left on the bench for the quarter-final against Spain as France crashed out with a 2-0 loss.

It would be over three years before Ben Arfa would be seen wearing the famous France jersey again as his national-team career came to an unceremonious end in friendly matches against England and Germany.

GettyTurning against Lyon

Despite signing a new contract until 2010, Ben Arfa made clear that he wanted to leave Lyon in 2008, right after being named the club's Player of the Year. Some top European teams were reportedly interested, including Real Madrid, Manchester United and Arsenal.

It was not a big-money move to a new league that would attract Ben Arfa, though. Instead, he opted to join Ligue 1 rivals Marseile in a contentious transfer. Lyon initially cancelled the deal despite OM booking a medical exam, and the player himself publicly declared his intention to join Eric Gerets' team, stating he would not turn up for training with OL.

He and Marseille got their way, but his beef with his former team did not end there. He regularly wound them up off the field while his new club were locked in a race for the Ligue 1 title with them. It all culminated in a top-of-the-table clash between Lyon and Marseille in December 2008. Ben Arfa had been in good form, scoring six goals in his first 13 Ligue 1 matches for Marseille – the most prolific run of his career until that point. The pre-match build-up was all about him as he criticised Lyon for not being a big club and accused them of being poorly organised when it came to paying players.

In the end, both teams were left disappointed, as it was Bordeaux who went on to claim the Ligue 1 title, with Ben Arfa and Marseille coming in three points behind in second place, and Lyon a further six adrift.

GettyMarseille misery

It wasn't long before Ben Arfa's ire turned away from and Lyon towards his new club. He was involved in altercations with team-mates Djibril Cisse and Modeste M'Bami, but the public fallout with coach Gerets was classic Ben Arfa. The winger refused to warm-up when Gerets looked to bring him on as a substitute to turn around a game versus Paris Saint-Germain, which in turn resulted in a heated discussion with the manager in the dressing room after the 4-2 defeat.

"No player has ever done that to me and he’ll get what’s coming to him," Gerets said. Ben Arfa recovered with a few good displays, but soon fell out of favour under Gerets, who left at the end of the season.

Things didn't go smoothly under new boss Didier Deschamps, either, as Ben Arfa's disappointing displays saw him dropped in favour of other stars. Marseille tried to sell him, but talks didn't go according to plan and he did his best to regain Deschamps' favour, chipping in with important goals in the Europa League. But after coming on to score a late equaliser in the first leg of their clash with Benfica, he then came off the bench late on in the return fixture and his impact was the complete opposite – he was sent off after 20 seconds for hitting another player.

It turned out to be an excellent season for Deschamps' Marseille and Ben Arfa turned up when he was needed, registering an assist in the Coupe de la Ligue final win against Bordeaux and then scoring against Grenoble in the last game of the season as OM won the Ligue 1 title for the first time in 18 years.

It wasn't enough to save the mecurial forward, though, as Deschamps told Ben Arfa in the summer that he had no role in his plans, and a move to Newcastle was soon arranged.