... Newcastle United do not demand a transfer fee for a player who only has six months left on his contract.
Ben Arfa would have had to return to training on Tyneside next week after Hull City manager Steve Bruce decided to terminate a loan move that had turned sour.
Bruce had challenged the France international to up his work rate in games, but was unimpressed by the former Marseille man’s efforts, as well as his inability to follow team instructions.
Despite lauding his arrival on a season’s loan on transfer deadline day back in August, Bruce did not have the patience to deal with a player who refused to listen to advice.
The player responded to a dressing room dressing down by Bruce after Hull’s defeat at Manchester United last month by fleeing to France, where he has been training on his own in order to maintain his fitness.
Nice, though, are keen to sign him and the deal should be confirmed after a medical next week.