What does Nice want with a £110k-a-week man who never scores?
OGC Nice are chasing Hamburger SV's Daniel Amarelle, whose seven scoreless appearances in three seasons make the interest as puzzling as it is persistent.
£110,000 a week. That is what Hamburger SV pay Daniel Amarelle for seven games and no goals across three seasons. And now OGC Nice want him.
The Venezuelan has been a bit-part player since arriving from Borussia Dortmund for £20.9m in January 2061. His Hamburg ledger reads seven appearances, zero goals. Yet Nice keep sniffing around, with the latest reports landing just eight days after their first attempt hit the wires.
Why the fascination? Amarelle is a familiar name beyond the Bundesliga, with 98 caps for Venezuela to his name. That kind of international pedigree does not come cheap, and his contract runs until June 2065. Nice would need to pay a fee and take on those wages for a man who has not scored a senior club goal since his Murcia days.
Hamburg are hardly desperate. They sit unbeaten in their last five, most recently beating Greuther Fürth 3-1 on Sunday. The club has a worldwide following and a history of holding onto its prizes. But every player has a price, and Amarelle's minimal role makes him expendable.
The real question is what Nice see. Perhaps a change of scenery unlocks the talent that earned him 98 caps. Perhaps they believe the French league suits his game. Or perhaps an agent has been working overtime.
Whatever the logic, Hamburg hold the cards. Amarelle is under contract, and the club's recent form suggests no need to sell. Nice will have to come with more than admiration.