Barnsley chief executive Gauthier Ganaye could be set to leave the club at the end of the month.
Reports in France claim he has agreed a deal to move to OGC Nice on February 1, at the end of the current transfer window. The Chronicle understands the deal is not finalised but one of the leading candidates is Ganaye, who was working at Oakwell yesterday.
The Reds’ co-chairmen Paul Conway and Chien Lee are also on the board of French top flight club Nice, where Lee owns a controlling stake. Nice – sixth in Ligue 1 and managed by former World Cup winner and Premier League superstar Patrick Vieira – are undergoing a restructuring of their off-field personnel.
The 31-year-old Frenchman has been at Oakwell since the summer of 2017, after working at his local club RC Lens. Ganaye oversaw relegation from the Championship last season and is attempting to help the club back up at the first attempt.
Although his hometown Saint-Omer in the north of France is further from Nice than it is from Barnsley, and he is settled in the area with his British wife, the move would be a return to his home country at a club who have Champions League ambitions.
He is thought to be highly unlikely to leave before the end of the January transfer window, in which there are 13 days remaining.
