Nice president Jean-Pierre Rivère questioned by police over Christophe Galtier racism allegations

Although Nice will have wanted to focus entirely on their Conference League quarter-final tie against Basel this week, Les Aiglons‘ preparations were very much overshadowed by serious allegations of racism against last season’s manager Christophe Galtier, made in an internal email attributed to former director Julien Fournier.

The now-Paris Saint-Germain manager has denied the allegations, and indicated that he would be launching legal proceedings against the journalists who first reported on the email and Fournier himself. The latter, meanwhile, has regretted the timing of the leak but did not explicitly contest the existence of the email in question. 

After a short statement released last week, the lack of reaction on the part of Nice’s management and players on the issue has been the subject of criticism. According to L’Équipe this morning, the club’s employees have been told not to speak about the affair. Reportedly, one employee who was about to speak out had received a phone call from the management to reiterate the serious sanctions set out by INEOS for those who speak. Given that director Dave Brailsford was apparently made aware of Fournier’s allegations at the end of last season, the former was said to have been concerned about the legal issues that would arise from the club not reporting incidents of racism to the authorities, add L’Équipe. 

Responding to L’Équipe, Nice have indicated that there is no specific ban on speaking about the accusations, only that those at the club were told to concentrate on their upcoming European quarter-final. Les Aiglons add that now that a legal investigation has been opened since last Friday – a preliminary one, for race or religion-based discrimination in the workplace – no public comment can be made.

In the last few days, several exchanges over the phone have taken place between those at INEOS – including Jean-Claude Blanc, who is now in charge of the overall sports operations – at the Paris Saint-Germain management, with both looking to avoid speaking about the issue to the media.

The Nice president, Jean-Pierre Rivère, is among those to have been questioned by police – with his presence at the meetings described by Fournier in the email having reportedly been verified, according to L’Équipe. Investigators have also seized certain documents relating to transfers and Galtier’s departure. While Brailsford is likely to be questioned, several employees at Nice are willing to testify and give their account of the events. One witness, speaking to L’Équipe, claims that none of what is described in Fournier’s email is false.

According to RMC Sport today, the Nice directors – Jean-Claude Blanc, Florent Ghisolfi and Dave Brailsford – spoke to employees on Tuesday. They confirmed the existence of the email, and indicated that they were open to taking questions on the topic. Those at the club were also asked to stay focused on taking the team to the Conference League semi-finals, while the directors also insisted that INEOS had big ambitions for Nice, despite their interest in buying Manchester United.

There are reportedly no recordings of exchanges involving Galtier or his agent and son John Valovic-Galtier, that could back up Fournier’s claims. Allegedly, there is one WhatsApp message in which the manager complains about defender Jean-Clair Todibo’s “traditional attire“. The French international’s reported clash with Galtier is the focal point of alleged tensions at the club last year over the management’s handling of the Ramadan fasting period.

In the meantime, INEOS are keeping a close eye on Didier Digard’s remarks on the case in his press conferences. Galtier will face the media on Thursday, ahead of the league leaders’ trip to Angers the following day.

,GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin