Four years after first leaving, Romain Perraud makes his return to OGC Nice. The 25-year-old left-back, who came through Le Gym’s academy, has rejoined the club on loan from Southampton FC with an option to buy.

His departure for Brest in 2019 could have spelt the end of his story with Nice. If so, it would have been a story tinged with regret or, at the very least, with the feeling that some business had been left unfinished. Having come through Le Gym’s youth ranks and been given his first professional start for Les Aiglons on the European stage in 2016, Perraud would never get the chance to show his full potential at the club from that point on, eventually making just three further appearances.

After being loaned out to Ligue 2 side Paris FC in the summer of 2018, he then moved to Stade Brestois in 2019, where he would establish himself in the top flight, making 61 appearances as well as racking up a total of seven assists and three goals in his final campaign there before moving to England and specifically to Southampton, for whom he has featured 60 times, including 49 times in the Premier League.

The end of his story with Le Gym hadn’t yet been written, though. Having blossomed abroad, Perraud is now picking up where he left off as he rejoins Nice on a season-long loan deal with an option to buy.

“Romain’s arrival solidifies our desire to strengthen the squad in the left-back position. He knows Ligue 1 and the club. He meets our fitness criteria with his power and his ability to put a shift in, and we all know how good he is with his left foot. He’s a committed and determined player who matches the identity that we want to establish at OGC Nice,” assured Florent Ghisolfi, the club’s sporting director. “At nearly 26 years old, he’s reaching peak form as he comes back stronger from his two-season experience in the Premier League.”

“When the chance to come back presented itself, I didn’t hesitate for a single second,” explained Perraud. “I now know that my departure back in the day was part of my career and that I had to go down that road, but I’ve always kept an eye on Le Gym. Now, I’m being offered the chance to draw a line under the regrets that I’ve built up and to express myself where it all started for me. I feel really proud and really excited.”

“This homecoming was fate in some ways, and we’re delighted about it,” hailed club president Jean-Pierre Rivère. “We got to know and develop a young player with a lot of quality and a great temperament, but now, he rejoins us as a household name. He’s established himself at the highest level and gained a lot of experience, and he’ll help us massively.”