When he was 16, Meghni decided to leave the Clairefontaine academy and sign for Cannes, but due to financial problems Cannes were immediately relegated to amateur football. Meghni had an unsuccessful time at Cannes as he was usually on the substitute bench for the reserve team, but in the summer of 2000 he was snapped up by Bologna at the age of 16 on a free transfer. Meghni views his time at Cannes as a learning experience as he was very young when he signed for the club.