Charlton Athletic might have a sense of what if as they watch Hungary at Euro 2024: View | OneFootball

How Charlton Athletic's former French right-back ended up in the Hungary squad for Euro 2024.

Highlights

Charlton Athletic made a number of forgettable signings under the ownership of Roland Duchatelet, but one of them made it to Euro 2024 with Hungary this summer.

Duchatelet bought Charlton in 2014, making the club part of his 'network' that included Belgian club Standard Liège, Hungarian side Ujpest, and Spanish outfit AD Alcorcón, among others.

The Addicks made ten signings from Standard Liège in the space of three seasons following the takeover, including former Celtic striker Tony Watt, Iran legend Reza Ghoochannejhad, and ex-Chelsea defender Tal Ben Haim.

The Belgian owner was an extremely unpopular figure in SE7, and Charlton were relegated to League One in 2016 amid fan protests against him.

Charlton also brought in two players from Ujpest during Duchatelet's ownership, current Sevilla goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic and French-born right-back Loic Nego.

Nego did not make an impact at Charlton

Nego played for three clubs in the 'network' – Standard Liège, Ujpest and Charlton.

The versatile full-back signed for Charlton in January 2014 as a 23-year-old, shortly after Duchatelet had taken ownership of the club. He made his debut for the Addicks a few days later, in a 2-1 defeat away at Wigan Athletic in the Championship.

However, that would prove to be his only appearance in a Charlton shirt. He re-joined Ujpest on loan for the 2014/15 season, before being released at the end of the campaign.

Nego signed for Hungarian side Fehérvár FC in 2015, the club that Charlton captain George Dobson joined this summer.

Nego made 312 appearances for the club as he made a real name for himself in Hungary. He won the title in the top division, narrowly missed out on qualifying for the group stage of the Champions League, and scored in a 2-2 draw against Chelsea in the Europa League during his time at Fehérvár.

The ex-Roma youngster recently had an interview with Ligue 1, where he spoke about getting Hungarian citizenship, turning down a move to Turkey and eventually being called up for the national team.

He said: "The club wanted to highlight young Hungarians. Since I had been playing in Hungary for over five years, the sporting director suggested that I take Hungarian citizenship in addition to French citizenship.

"I could have signed with Beşiktaş, but Videoton (now known as Fehérvár) wanted to keep me and rewarded me with a new contract. Shortly after, they told me that the rules for joining the Hungarian national team would evolve, and an opportunity could arise for me.

"I think I could have waited for the French national team until my death. Unfortunately for me, I wasn't going to have that chance to play for the French national team, which was my childhood dream, so why not represent Hungary, a country that welcomed me very well and gave me a lot... Today, I have no regrets!"

Nego won the UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship with France in 2010, and at Euro 2020 he played against France for Hungary in the senior version of the competition.

The 33-year-old is also part of Hungary's squad at Euro 2024 in Germany.

Charlton fans might wonder what could have been

It is fair to say that no Charlton fan could have predicted Nego's future success when he was released by the Addicks in 2015.

He currently plays in Ligue 1 for Le Havre and provided five assists in the French top flight this season as the club finished 15th and avoided relegation.

Nego probably never would have played Europa League football or featured at the Euros if he had stayed in SE7, but Charlton fans might wonder whether he could have become a good player at The Valley if he had been given more opportunities to prove himself.