Sunday, May 22, 2011

Arsenal FC: Why Samir Nasri Stalling over the New Contract Could Benefit Gunners

 
 The Gunners endured a miserable end to the season and ended the season with a draw against Fulham, who looked organised and deserved a draw against Arsenal. Though the Gunners were in the title race till April, they have been spectacularly poor in the last few weeks which has left them in fourth position with a tricky Champions League qualifier to win in order to be in Champions League next season.

Arsenal supporters have enjoyed a frustrating end to the season and there was chants from the away support on asking Wenger to spend money in the summer. The Arsenal manager has always stressed on being sensible in the transfer market and has been extremely reluctant to pay inflated prices in the transfer market to secure the services of players.

The French tactician has had great success with Arsenal in the past but with no trophies to show in the last six years, the pressure on the Arsenal manager is enormous. Next season could potentially decide the future of this young team built by Wenger and they will have to win at least one major trophy. The fact that the manager has not spent much in the last few years is only a positive for the board but not for the fans who have had to pay inflated prices to watch the Gunners in action.

Wenger has stressed on building a young successful team at Arsenal and though there are a number of talented youngsters at the club, they have not had much success in the last six years. This Arsenal team was close to challenging Manchester United for the title but did not have the consistency and mental strength under pressure.

The Arsenal manager has always been proud of having such a young and talented group of youngsters at his disposal and is desperate to win trophies with this team. However, with the manager not spending much in the transfer market to solve their problems, the Gunners have fallen short in the last few seasons. But with Cesc Fabregas likely to be the subject of a Barcelona bid in the summer and Nasri stalling over his contract negotiations, Wenger has a tough and unenviable next two months.

Nasri has certainly been one of the best performers for the Gunners this season and is an integral member of the team. With the uncertainty surrounding Fabregas' future at Arsenal, it is no surprise that Wenger and the Arsenal board are trying to get Nasri to sign a new contract this summer with only one year remaining in his current contract.

If Wenger was to lose Nasri over a failed contract negotiation this summer, it would mean a huge backlash from Arsenal fans after their disappointment this season. Also, it would imply that some of the best talents in the club are only looking to the club as a finishing school for their development and move on to bigger clubs in search of trophies and personal glory. Wenger will certainly try his best to avoid these scenarios and make his best efforts to sign Nasri on a new contract.

However, Samir Nasri is likely to have the upper hand in these contract negotiations with only one year on his contract and his superb performances have meant that there are a number of clubs who would bid for him should he not sign a contract this term. The French midfielder has adjusted extremely well at Arsenal and has taken the responsibility during the absences of Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie.

It is understandable that a player of Nasri's quality will be linked to various clubs around the world and also he will have the desire to win trophies in his career. He will know that it does take some time to adjust at any new club and he is well settled at Arsenal, where he is regarded as one of the most important players. The France manager Laurent Blanc has also rewarded him for his excellent performances by making him the captain of the France team in one of the Euro qualifiers.

He is certainly not yet developed to his full potential and under the guidance of Wenger at Arsenal, he will continue to grow into a world class player. Nasri staying at Arsenal would be good for his career and he would continue to play an important role in this team though he might not always play in his preferred role as the central attacking midfielder.
Though staying at Arsenal and continuing to develop under Wenger seems to be the best option for Nasri, he is sure to have the desire to win trophies. The Arsenal manager will not want to lose Nasri this summer as it will be a huge blow to the Gunners next season and Nasri's agent has the opportunity to ask Wenger to spend the transfer money on quality players in order to sign the player on a new contract.

As rumours are just starting to circulate around Nasri's contract situation at Arsenal, it is important that Wenger signs quality players like Nasri's compatriot Karim Benzema to signal the intent to spend money on the right players. If Wenger can bring in few good players to the Emirates, then it is expected that Nasri will sign a new contract at Arsenal but if he does not plan to bring in quality players, Nasri's contract situation would mean that the player could put the manager under increased pressure to sign quality players in the summer.

Arsene Wenger is likely to understand the feeling of the fans after their disappointing season and will want to avoid the wrath of the fans by selling Samir Nasri and could sign a few more quality players to keep the existing players happy and also to have a strong team for the next season. It is in everyone's best interests that Nasri continues his progress at the Emirates next season but Wenger will have to spend money to acquire some important players in order to convince Nasri and some other quality players to stay at the Emirates.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I would hate to see Nasri go, to be honest the way things have been with Cesc lately if it was a choice between who left i'd choose Cesc

Happy_So_Lucky

Vijay Murali said...

Even I would hate to see Nasri go but there is a good possibility he will stay.. The longer he waits to sign a new contract, Wenger will spend money to ensure Nasri is convinced by his spending.. thats what I wanted to convey but if he does not stay, Arsenal will be in a dire state..

Vijay Murali said...

Also, Thanks a lot for commenting on the post..

@akshayvanpersie said...

nice job mate...i hope cesc goes more than nasri, also nasri can replace fab in the middle of the midfield and we can buy a new winger, preferabley eden hazard

Vijay Murali said...

I hope we can retain both of them for next season and also bring in some quality.. I just have a feeling that we don't have the creativity without Cesc and it would be really difficult to cope without him.. Nasri can play in the center but he is more of a dribbler than a passer and someone like Ramsey is ideally suited if he can regain his best form..

Also, I think Wenger needs to sign a winger but I don't expect him to splash out on Hazard.. He is France player of the year and has a huge price on his head.. probably someone like Gervinho and don't forget we have young Miyaichi who is class..