Courbis denies taking Niger advisory role

Olympique Marseille former coach Rolland Courbis waves to spectators in a file photo.

Rolland Courbis, the former Olympique Marseille manager once jailed for transfer irregularities, has denied taking up an advisor's role with Niger for the African Nations Cup early next year.
The Niger Football Federation said on Wednesday that Courbis had accepted an offer to oversee the west African country's debut at the tournament in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, only for the Frenchman to deny a deal.
"There is no agreement," Courbis, who spent several months in jail at the end of 2009 for taking bribes to buy and sell players, told French sports daily L'Equipe's website (www.lequipe.fr).
"We are working on the possibility that I join them but nothing is done yet. Some details have yet to be sorted out."
Niger federation president Djibrilla Hima Hamidou had said the 58-year-old would act as an "advisor and super manager and lend his expertise to coach Harouna Douala".
Niger were surprise qualifiers after South Africa bungled the permutations needed to win their preliminary pool and have been drawn in Group C along with co-hosts Gabon, Morocco and Tunisia at the January 21-February 12 finals.
Courbis, who accompanied the Niger team to a training match in Dubai and a home friendly against Botswana earlier this month, has also coached Bordeaux and Montpellier and is now a regular football analyst on French radio.