‘One lesson from all of this is that it’s difficult to be at two clubs,” said a reflective Nancy president, Gauthier Ganaye, after their relegation to France’s third tier last month. Feted as English football’s youngest chief executive after joining Barnsley for a spell in 2018 at the age of 30, Ganaye spent last season juggling his role at Nancy with being executive president of the Belgian club KV Oostende.
Barnsley, who were relegated from the Championship in April despite reaching the playoffs last year, are, like Nancy and Oostende, part-owned by New City Capital – an investment group that also includes American investors Pacific Media Group.
