Pablo Zabaleta feels Samir Nasri could be a game-changer for West Ham United.
Nasri has been training with the Hammers for quite a while and talks over a short term contract have already taken place between the club and his representative. The 31 year old former Arsenal and Manchester City player has been trying to build up his match fitness as the club is ready to meet his £80,000 per week wage demand.
Nasri was given an 18 months ban for receiving a banned substance during his stay at Los Angeles. The attacking midfielder is free to join any club from January 1 and joined the Hammers training from November 15 in a bid to prove his worth once again in the Premier League.
Zabaleta believes Nasri’s inclusion could be a great boost for the Hammers. “Manuel [Pellegrini] knows Samir very well from his time at Manchester City.
“We need players with his quality, especially because also we lost two key players who brought quality into this team – Manuel Lanzini in the summer before the World Cup and then [Jack] Wilshere, who is very close to coming back to the team.
“On the ball [Nasri] is fantastic. He is one of those players who can give to the team some possession and play between the lines to help the attacking players to create chances.”
“Samir needs a bit of time.
“He has not been football training for more than a year but sometimes those players are technically very good so he probably needs to focus more on his fitness levels than his passing and all this.
“We know Samir and his quality. When he is fit he is on a different level. He is a fantastic player.
“Hopefully he can reach his best fitness level. He has to feel physically good because we know that the Premier League is so demanding physically.”
