Barkley arrived after the conclusion of his contract with Chelsea on Sunday, having spurned the likes of Celtic and Southampton to sign with les Aiglons.

A Ligue 1 Uber Eats debut as soon as Sunday awaits, although he could also get his first taste of action against Cologne in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday.

What else is there to know about the long-time England international?

1) Everton prodigy

Barkely joined the same Everton youth academy that produced Wayne Rooney at the age of 11, racing through the age group teams before making his Premier League debut at the tender age of 17 years, eight months and 16 days.

Tim Cahill - who later concluded his Everton career with 56 goals, 22 of them headers - was taken aback by the youngster's ability. "I've been lucky enough to have played with some great players in my career, but I don't think I've ever seen a talent like Ross," he said at the time.

Every inch the central midfielder when he broke through, Barkley became progressively more attacking in his time at Everton and concluded his Toffees career with 27 goals and 28 assists in 179 games, the last 40 of his goal-involvements coming across his final two seasons at Goodison Park.

2) Chelsea Blues?

It was that form that saw him earn a January 2018 move to then-Premier League champions Chelsea, the west London club paying £15m/€17.45m for the services of a player who was, by this time, also an established England international.

For two seasons, Barkley was a first-team regular at Stamford Bridge, despite competing with French FIFA World Cup winner N'Golo Kanté, as well as Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic and, latterly, Mason Mount, for a central midfield berth. Barkley replaced Kovacic in the UEFA Europa League final in 2019, in which Chelsea beat Arsenal 4-1.

He only made one start in his final full season at Stamford Bridge, though, having spent the previous campaign on loan with Aston Villa. But he left with his head held high, having also won the FA Cup in 2018 and the FIFA Club World Cup last year.

His 100th appearance for Chelsea - a 2-1 win over Watford - also saw him score the final goal of the Roman Abramovich era.

3) He could have played for Nigeria

Still just 28, Barkley has played 33 times for England, scoring six goals, although he hasn't been called up since 2019. Capped all the way since under-16 level for the country of his birth, Nigeria never really had a chance of stealing him, but Barkely was eligible through his father, Patrick Effanga, who left the family when Ross was an infant.

Barkley had 34 youth international caps with the Young Lions - which included a penalty shoot-out win over Germany in the Montaigu Tournament, as captain, in 2009, and he was part of the World Cup squad in Brazil in the 2014 edition.

Barkley scored twice when he won his last international cap, England beating Bulgaria 6-0 in qualifying for UEFA Euro 2020, although he missed the cut for squad for the deferred Finals tournament in 2021. Ray Wilkins, Glenn Hoddle and Chris Waddle are among the English midfielders to have played for their country whilst based in France, and Barkley will hope some good form could see him follow suit.

4) A Nice style of play?

A physically imposing 6'2" midfielder, Barkley combines his natural pace and power with a svelte touch and quick footballing brain. A maker and taker of goals, Barkley gives Nice coach Lucien Favre plenty of options, although he will most likely find himself lining up ahead of Pablo Rosario and Khéphren Thuram in midfield.

Barkley's versatility means he could function as one of the double pivots should Rosario or Thuram get injured, but he is more likely to be found attacking the final third from deep like fellow new arrival Ramsey.

Roberto Martinez and Roy Hodgson are among the managers who have compared Barkley's style to that of Paul Gascoigne, while Barcelona head coach Xavi once claimed Barkely had the talent to turn out for the Blaugrana. If he can re-find his feet in Nice, les Aiglons could be onto a very good thing indeed.

5) French connection

Liverpool-born Barkeley is the third Brit to arrive in Nice this summer following Welshman Ramsey and English left-back Joe Bryan, who has joined on loan from Fulham. Schmeichel, despite speaking with a Northern-English accent owing to his father Peter's time with Manchester United, was born in Copenhagen.

The club is is owned by the United Kingdom's richest man in Sir Jim Ratcliffe, while it was an English manager, Bill Berry, who led Nice to the second of their three Coupe de France triumphs back in 1954.

Nice the city is twinned with Scottish capital Edinburgh, although no Scots - nor Northern Irish - have yet turned out for the Côte d'Azur side.