SPORT Sneijder to sign 1-year contract with Nice

Dutch legend Wesley Sneijder is on his way to France to sign a 1-year contract with French side OGC Nice, where he will team up with Mario Balotelli as the club looks to push forward after a last year’s surprising title challenge.

According to Dutch journalist Mike Verweij, Sneijder was spotted boarding an airplane in Amsterdam bound for France along with his family and agent Guido Albers.

Sneijder, 33 years old, saw his Galatasaray contract expire this summer after spending three-and-a-half seasons in Turkey. The decision was surprising given how productive he was for the Turkish club, assisting a whopping 15 goals in 28 league appearances last season, and scoring five.

With Sneijder’s creativity, Balotelli could thrive even more than he did last year, when he scored 15 goals in 23 league appearances to help Nice finish third in Ligue 1. Even with Balotelli’s goals, Nice struggled to score at times, with their 63 league goals a distant fourth in comparison with the other top Ligue 1 teams.

The addition of Sneijder could help close the gap, especially with attacking midfielder Younes Belhanda leaving for Sneijder’s old club Galatasaray.