Arsenal need experience.
So would Arsene sign another kid for £11 million ?
Having lost Flamini, who is 24, would he sign Nasri, who will be 21 on June 26 ?
This kid could be a great player.
He came on against Scotland in Paris. The Scots were 1-0 up after McFadden’s goal and France already had Anelka and Trezeguet on as strikers, Ribery on one flank and Malouda on the other, so Domenech took off Patrick Vieira and put in Samir Nasri.
France desperately needed a goal. And Nasri looked good. But when they didn’t score, Domenech took off left back Abidal and put on Benzema, France’s most talented young striker. So he now had three strikers and three creative wingers but they still couldn’t score and they lost 1-0.
Nasri is spiky, competitive, two-footed, a flair player with an edge. He’s quite stocky, a very good dribbler, stronger on his right foot than his left. But he can shoot with his left.
As a footballer, Nasri is a lot better than Malouda or Quaresma or Hleb or Kranjcar, and more of a team player than Ben Arfa, the Lyon winger who is not in their team much these days.
Samir Nasri could be an Arsenal icon. He could sell shirts, polo shirts, T-shirts, skateboards, anything.
I could see him being a good role-model for even younger players at the club.
So in all those ways Nasri would be a great signing. He is better than Hleb because he is more direct. With Nasri, there would be more end product. He’s not scared to shoot and not scared to miss. And the sale of Hleb would pay for him. And he has played under pressure at a big club, Marseilles, in front of demanding crowds
For a kid, Nasri has done a lot.
And Arsene signs French players. He loves young French players and can improve them.
In the French League, Nasri looks better than Joe Cole at the same age. In the Prem, let’s wait and see.
Arsene says he will sign two or three players. By that he means he will sign three if Hleb goes. And two if Hleb stays.
My gut feeling is this : Nasri would be fantastic in a team of adults. He could galvanise a team of adults, re-invigorate it, pep it up. In an under-25 team, who knows?
If Arsene buys a 27-year old international centreback who is six foot four and has won things, and powerhouse YaYa Toure, then Nasri would be a great signing.
If not, he might be an irrelevance. Depends who else is bought.
As I keep saying, it’s a big summer. We are eight days into a big summer.