OGC Nice fan Jean-Baptiste Quirino enjoys watching his favourite club from 9,500km away as he lives the 'American dream' in Phoenix, Arizona. And if that means waking up very early, the biologist is happy to do it as he follows in the footsteps of 'Marcos de Niza', the first Niçois in Phoenix.

"After school, I took a year out. And I liked it so much, I never came back, apart from for holidays," explains JBQ. "Even if it's not like before, the famous 'American dream', there are a lot of opportunities here. And if you work, you have a chance of succeeding." Flourishing personally and professionally, he's not given up everything of his old life: "The Ray, away games in Monaco on the train with my friends Alain, Yoan, Alberto…You can't imagine how much I miss that."

He added: "My dad [Pierre] owned the Coco Beach restaurant at the time. As soon as Le Gym scored, I called him to let him know. When we conceded one, however, I didn't…"

'I SET THE ALARM FOR 4AM'  

"The roles have been reversed now and it's me that has the difficulties in seeing the match," he explained. "There's no L1 broadcaster here where I live, and the broadcasts are geo-blocked. I muddle through best I can. And when I can't, I listen to the radio, watch the highlights and follow social media: Instagram, the Zap'Gym, I don't miss a second. I didn't know you commetate games live on Facebook now. I'm going to watch that, I get the feeling I'll like it."

One problem technology cannot overcome is geography. "The worst thing is the time difference. When we play at 9pm in France, it's perfect for me, I have my 'football breakfast'. But when we play at 1pm, it's four in the morning for me…I set the alarm, but it's not easy. It means that I follow the scheduling of games very closely indeed."

'MY WIFE IS A DARIO FAN'

He has even managed to transmit his passion for the Rouge-et-Noir to his wife. "My wife has been converted. She's a fan of Dario [Cvitanich]. And the one time I took her to the Allianz Riviera, he scored twice [against Toulouse in a 3-2 win in which Alexey Bosetti also found the net]. And when we have children, there's no doubt about who they'll support."

But his 'mission' of bringing a piece of Nissa to the USA doesn't stop there: "I have bought shirts and given them to friends. I have a friend, Kiawna Mounts,  who played NCAA level at university. I gave her a Nice shirt and she wore it when she played at Grambling (Louisiana). I always have my pennant in the car, the '06' on the licence plate, and the Eagle on my motorbike keychain. People often ask me what it means and I explain."

It's not an easy task where 'football' is played with shoulder pads and a helmet, but JB has noticed a change in recent years. "OGC Nice is increasingly recognised. Mario Balotelli's spell at the club raised the profile. Football fans also know the club through Dante, who is highly respected for his years at Bayern. And when you bring in a coach that won the title ahead of PSG, that turns heads."

'AMERICANS WOULD LIKE GALTIER'

"I've shown some training session pictures to my friends: Galtier has everything for Americans to like him, with his personality and his success," said JB, who's looking forward to Nice-Marseille. "If I could, I'd teleport myself to Troyes. I hope we'll bring back the three points." Between now and then, Amine Gouiri & Co. face Lyon, a week after losing to Troyes. "Two matches at 1pm, that's early," says Jean-Baptiste, who remembers how strong Lyon were in the first decade of the millenium. "When I went to the Ray, they were untouchable. I remember Vahirua's lob, but that was a surprise back then. Now, we're on the same level, and it should be a great game. A 3-1 win with goals from Dolberg, Gouiri and Delort. That wouldn't be bad, would it?"

AN 'ANCESTOR' CALLED MARCOS

"One day, I was walking in Tempe, a town in the Phoenix suburbs where I did my studies, and I saw a school fresco on which was inscribed, 'Marcos de Niza'. I said to myself, 'The spelling isn't right, but it sounds like it's from back home.' I did some research on the internet, and I was right: Marcos was the first pioneer in Tempe. It's a nice touch," says JB, who makes fun of his friends by saying, "My Niçois ancestor was here before you all."

"Brother Marc of Nice, better known under his Spanish name Fray Marcos de Niza, was born around 1495 in Nice and died 25 mars 1558 in Mexico," says his Wikipedia page. The Franciscan explorer is known as the 'first non-Native American' to set foot in Arizona, and was part of a group who "tried to establish ideal Native American societies in America."

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Fabien Hill