This weekend we could possibly see the return of Robert Pires in the Premier league. It would be difference for him definitely to go up against Arsenal in an Aston Villa shirt but we wish him all the best. With so much interest in him since his return to England, I couldn’t help but notice how this Arsenal legend’s career is now being mirrored by another star Frenchman in the current squad: Samir Nasri.
Nasri’s career thus far has taken a similar direction to Bobby’s. First and foremost, both of them joined us from Marseille. Pires came in 2000 with a price tag of 6.5 million pounds while Nasri cost us double that at 12 million pounds (due to his age and inflation, I guess)when he signed in 2008.
When he first came to Arsenal, Pires found it difficult to get going and was harshly critized for his early performances in an Arsenal shirt. However, in his second full season, he quickly struck his legendary partnership down the Arsenal left with Ashley Cole and Thierry Henry to bring the glory years to Arsenal. He was also awarded both local Player of the Year awards that season.
Nasri signed on in 2008 and similar to Pires, struggled in his first season as he failed to come to grip with the physical demands of the English Premier League. He missed a large chunk of his second season through injury although he came back strongly to finish the second, scoring what was Arsenal goal of the season against Porto in the Champion’s League. This year, he is arguably the best player in the Arsenal team and could possibly be an early contender for Player of the Season come May.
Robert Pires went on to become a legend winning every domestic title with the Gunners so if all things remain equal, Samir Nasri will bring us back to the glory years we enjoyed during the Robert Pires years.
Pires did NOT win the Carling Cup!!!
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