“There is only one Zidane” - or is there? What about Samir Nasri?

[Al-khiyal]

A clever kid from a rough Marseilles neighbourhood, born of Algerian ancestry, prepares himself for his full “Les Bleus” debut.

Zinedine Zidane in 1994. I hear you cry? Wrong.

Franck Ribéry, World Cup 2006. Close, no cigar.

Samir Nasri, May 29th 2007 at home to Austria. Correct.

Samir Nasri. Samir who? If you haven’t heard of him yet, read on – you won’t be disappointed.

Nasri, like Zidane, has a very similar playing style and family background. On the pitch, Nasri’s surging wingplay, incisive decision making and dribbling skills with both feet already draw comparison with the great man himself. Nasri’s parents made La Gavrotte-Peyret in France their home (Nasri’s grandparents are Algerian); La Gavrotte-Peyret is only a 5 minute drive away from La Castellane, where Zizou’s family brought him up and where he began his footballing apprenticeship.

With Franck Ribéry currently injured, Nasri is seen as the key playmaker at Olympique Marseille, intuitively linking the play between defence, midfield and attack, is strong on the ball and is fast developing the habit of making the impossible seem possible (like the night he dribbled the ball past 4 men in a league game against Lyon, got tackled in the box by 2 players, won the ball back, beat the 2 defenders and almost took the ball around Gregory Coupet to score).

“His intelligence of the game is extraordinary, considering his age. He’s fast, good with both feet and reads the game extremely well. He can still improve but he will amaze us.”

Don’t take my word on this kid’s potential – the quotation above is by Zidane himself on Canal-Plus, where the great man now works as a commentator.

Nasri’s debut for France against Austria was capped by the assist that set-up Lyon’s Karim Benzema for the only goal in a 1-0 win, with the promise of many more trophies and accolades to follow.

“There is only one Zidane”, Nasri told weekly France Football. “His career is over and mine is only just starting. I want to go my own way.”

Franck Ribéry, 24 on April 7, six different clubs since 2001 (anyone heard of Nicolas Anelka?) possible cost £20 million, great player – but hopefully not an Arsenal player.

Samir Nasri, 19, 1 club, possible cost £5-10 million (contract ends in 2009), potentially world-class.

A decade watching the unquestionable talent and genius of Mr. Dennis Bergkamp has gone, will the “new Zidane” be bringing another decade of brilliance to Arsenal? Roll on August!

“There is only one Zidane” - or is there?

[Bent_Bladi]

WOW! I'll be keeping my eye on this guy - and praying that he doesn't have a temper

[Al-khiyal]

Samir Nasri

[Bent_Bladi]

omg! yu2bur 2albi shou cute! and talented

thanks

[Al-khiyal]

Samir Nasri quitte Marseille pour Arsenal

Mercredi 21 Mai 2008 -- Le joueur international français d’origine algérienne, Samir Nasri, quitte l’Olympique de Marseille (OM) selon le quotidien sportif français L’Équipe dans son édition du jour. Il évoluera la saison prochaine à Arsenal, dans la Premier League anglaise, sous la houlette de l’entraîneur français Arsène Wenger.

Selon l’Équipe, les deux clubs, l’OM et Arsenal, se seraient mis d’accord sur une indemnité de transfert de 15 millions d’euros. Samir Nasri qui doit participer au stage de l’équipe de France pourrait même signer son contrat aujourd’hui.

Handicapé par de nombreux pépins physiques, le maître à jouer de l’équipe marseillaise aura effectué une saison en demi-teinte. Désigné meilleur espoir de la ligue 1 l’an dernier, Samir Nasri aura découvert cette saison la Ligue des champions après avoir goûté aux joies de l’équipe de France. L’an dernier, le club espagnol du Réal Madrid le considérait comme le successeur de Zinedine Zidane...

[Al-khiyal]

Agent: Nasri not a done deal

May 21, 2008 -- Samir Nasri’s agent has warned Arsenal that he and his client are in no rush to decide the midfielder’s future, and Jean-Pierre Bernes also claims he has received rival offers for the France international.

Both English and French media alike have been awash with speculation that Nasri is poised to move to North London after the playmaker admitted that Marseille’s game with Strasbourg on Saturday could be his last for the Ligue 1 club.

Respected daily L’Equipe further claimed on Wednesday that a deal had been reached between the two clubs and it appeared to be only a matter of hours before the 20-year-old was unveiled as Arsenal’s first signing of the transfer window.

Bernes has sought to put a dampener on such reports though, claiming that Arsenal have competition to sign a player who has been described as ‘the new Zinedine Zidane’ thanks to his Algerian roots and the fact he is a playmaker born in the streets of Marseille.

"We are not in a hurry. It is true that we are examining an offer from Arsenal, which is interesting for Samir Nasri from a sporting point of view," Jean-Pierre Bernes told La Provence.

"But I have also received other offers.”

Nasri is viewed as a potential replacement for Alexander Hleb who has been strongly linked with a move to Italian champions Inter.

The French youngster led the assist table in Ligue 1 this season alongside Rennes' Jerome Leroy and has been named in Raymond Domenech's preliminary squad for Euro 2008.

[Al-khiyal]

Nasri to complete Arsenal move this weekend - report

May 24, 2008 -- Marseille star Samir Nasri will complete formalities over the weekend and be ready to sign for Arsenal at the beginning of next week, according to reports in the French press.

Marseille daily La Provence is reporting that the deal will be finalised "at the start of next week" after intense speculation over the past fortnight linking the player with a big money move.

It s thought the midfield maestro will cost the Gunners £11-13 million, having just recently signed a contract extension with l'OM, which many believed would keep him at the club for at least another year.

He has in the past been likened with the great Zinedine Zidane and, fittingly, courted by Zizou's two most prominent former clubs, Juventus and Real Madrid. However, speculated interest never materialised into a formal offer from either side, and Arsenal, who have had more tenuous and less publicised links with the player, look like the club who will make the swoop this summer.

Nasri's agent has confirmed that talks are in progress with the London club, but reports emerged yesterday hinting that the 20-year-old was in no hurry to leave his hometown club.

The press has been persistent in pushing this deal as final, but now the saga may finally be coming to an end, and Arsenal making the big-money signing that the fans had been calling for.

It is thought that Marseille will use the money generated from the Nasri transfer to finance a move for Lyon winger Hatem Ben Arfa - who was also linked with Arsenal - who, despite looking set to leave the seven-time Ligue 1 winners, will not be leaving his native France...