“Nice is a black team”, that would be the verdict for which Christophe Galtier, current (outgoing) Paris Saint Germain manager but at the helm of the team on the Côte d’Azur at the time of the events, will be put on trial on 15 December for “morality”. Harassment and Discrimination”. This was established by the Nice Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Christophe Galtier was arrested in the morning together with his adopted son John Valovic-Galtier. The prosecutor himself had announced it.
A preliminary inquiry into allegations of “discrimination based on an alleged race or religious affiliation” was launched in mid-April after allegations were made against Christophe Galtier while he was on the bench in Nice. Now the twist.
In an e-mail to the club management of Nice, as the independent journalist Romain Molina revealed on RMC radio at the time, the club’s former sporting director Julien Fournier had particularly denounced these comments attributed to Galtier: “He then replied that I had to consider the reality of the city and that we actually couldn’t have that many blacks and Muslims on the team.” And “He told me about his desire to make significant changes to the squad and also explained that he wanted to limit the number of Muslim players as much as possible.”
“I am deeply shocked by the comments attributed to me, which have been irresponsibly taken up again by some.”, Galtier reacted in a press conference after the case became known in mid-April. And on the 21st of the same month he again filed charges of death threats and defamation against Fournier and two journalists.
Prosecutors also questioned several Nice players and officials, including club president Jean-Pierre Rivère and former coach Didier Digard.