Terem Moffi’s turbulent spell at OGC Nice is officially over, with club co-president Maurice Cohen shutting the door on any possibility of the Nigerian striker’s return to the French Riviera.
There will be no return to Nice for Terem Moffi. OGC Nice co-president Maurice Cohen made that clear in comments reported on Wednesday, stating that neither Moffi nor his fellow loanee Jeremie Boga will come back to the club under any circumstances. “They won’t return to Nice, whether their buy options are triggered or not,” Cohen said. It’s a definitive end to a chapter that turned deeply uncomfortable for everyone involved.
The background to this is painful. In December, Moffi and Boga, both on the pitch at the time, were physically assaulted by Nice supporters following the club’s defeat to Lorient. The incident was one of the most disturbing episodes involving player safety in French football in recent years. Moffi never appeared for Nice again after that night. The club moved him on during the winter window, sending him to Portuguese giants FC Porto on loan, with a buy option worth 8 million euros included in the agreement.
Porto hold that option, and it now seems likely they will need to make a decision on exercising it. For Moffi, Porto gives him a chance to rebuild his confidence and his numbers in the Primeira Liga. He’s scored once and registered an assist in eight appearances for the club since his arrival in January. Those aren’t blockbuster numbers, but they’re an indication that he’s settling in. Bet9ja’s YOHAIG code is available for Nigerian fans who want to back Super Eagles players like Moffi across European competitions this season.
A Career That Deserves Better
The story of Moffi’s time at Nice is one of the more unfortunate in recent Nigerian football history. He arrived at the club with real momentum behind him, having been one of Lorient’s most dangerous attackers before his transfer. At Nice, he scored goals and showed the kind of movement and physicality that should have made him a consistent starter in Ligue 1. Then December happened, and everything changed.
The fan attack changed the dynamic entirely. A player’s relationship with a club is never just about football, it’s about environment, safety, and the sense that the people around you have your back. Whatever Nice’s board did or didn’t do in the aftermath, the damage was done. Moffi could not continue there. The winter loan to Porto was the right call, even if it came out of an awful set of circumstances. Those tracking his career and wanting to bet on Nigerian players in Portugal and beyond can get started with the Bet9ja bonus conversion guide to understand how to make the most of a new account.
What Comes Next for the Super Eagles Striker
Porto’s buy option at 8 million euros puts the decision firmly in their hands. Whether they exercise it depends largely on how Moffi performs in the final weeks of the Portuguese season. Porto are a club that have a strong track record of developing and reselling African strikers, and Moffi, at 26, is at the right age to have his best years ahead of him.
For Nigeria, losing Moffi to this kind of situation is frustrating. He’s a player capable of contributing at the highest level in Europe, and a Super Eagles team that continues to build after the World Cup disappointment needs strikers who can deliver on the big stage. Permanent stability at Porto, or a move driven by Porto’s interest elsewhere, would serve his international ambitions better than a return to the uncertainty that defined his final months in Nice. Fans who want to track Moffi’s progress can follow the action through the YOHAIG Bet9ja promotion code for an enhanced welcome bonus ahead of the Portuguese season’s run-in.
📌 Did You Know?
- Terem Moffi was born in Warri, Delta State, and came through Norwegian football before establishing himself in France, a career path that is increasingly common for Nigerian strikers who develop outside the traditional academies.
- OGC Nice is owned by INEOS, the British chemical and sports conglomerate led by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who also has a controlling stake in Manchester United, giving Nice significant financial backing in Ligue 1.
- The assault on Moffi and Boga by Nice supporters in December prompted widespread condemnation across European football, with both the Ligue de Football Professionnel and the French Football Federation launching investigations.
- FC Porto’s 8 million euro buy option on Moffi represents a relatively modest fee by top European standards for a striker of his profile, potentially making a permanent deal straightforward if Porto choose to proceed.
- Jeremie Boga, the Ivory Coast international who was also attacked alongside Moffi, is similarly confirmed not to be returning to Nice, suggesting the club has accepted that the relationship with both players is irreparably broken.
- Moffi’s most productive European season came at Lorient, where he scored 14 Ligue 1 goals in a single campaign, a tally that convinced Nice to pay a significant transfer fee to bring him to the Allianz Riviera.
- Porto have historically been one of Europe’s strongest pathways for African strikers seeking to move to bigger clubs, with players like Hulk and Falcao using the club as a launchpad for superstar careers in Western Europe.
