The unsettled star taunted Mancini after the City chief admitted
he was so frustrated with the French ace he wanted to punch him.
Nasri said: “If he wants to hit me then he should hit me.”
He then stuck the knife in by declaring that his former Arsenal
boss Arsene Wenger is “the greatest coach I ever worked with”. Nasri’s fury was
sparked after he starred in Saturday’s 4-0 demolition of Newcastle. He has
rarely played so well since his £24million move.
And Mancini said: “I’d like to give him a punch. A player like him
should play like this every game.” Nasri has scored just once in 21 league
appearances this season
SAMIR NASRI made no bones about it.
The Manchester City star said: “Arsene Wenger is the greatest coach I’ve worked with.
“If I’d worked with Wenger at Manchester City, maybe I would have avoided some problems.”
What a slap in the face for Roberto Mancini, who no doubt thought he was geeing-up Nasri by accusing him of a lack of effort.
The Etihad chief said: “The second year is always difficult to win the title again and sometimes the players think it is enough to play 50 per cent.
“We’ve probably had this problem this year.”
But Nasri, 24, last night hit back with vengeance, unloading all the frustration of his second season in Manchester.
He said: “Mancini showed bad faith in his comments. He is exaggerating. He doesn’t necessarily speak all that good English so sometimes his comments are a bit raw.
“When he said I trained at 50 per cent, that wasn’t true.
“I haven’t had a good season, I am aware of that and the first to admit it. To say it’s because of a lack of effort just isn’t true.”
Nasri left Arsenal to join City in a £24million move in August 2011 and helped them to the Premier League title last term.
But he compared his troubled time at City this year with his spell at Arsenal under Wenger. Nasri said: “It’s time to talk, explain and say certain things.
“Arsene Wenger is the one who understood me most, with whom I had the greatest affinity.
“I’m very grateful to him as he signed me after perhaps my worst season at Marseille when I had a bout of meningitis. He played a huge role in my career.”
Nasri insists he has no regrets over joining City. He added: “Winning a title with the fervour of the fans who hadn’t seen that for 40 years, well, it was exceptional.
“And I hope that this season we’ll win the FA Cup to have the same feeling.
“There’s a big difference between the squad at City and Arsenal. I do earn more at City but I joined a better, more competitive team.
“Wenger is someone who wants to win but doesn’t have the means to compete with the other clubs.
“When he told me he was going to sell Cesc and sign Gervinho and nobody else then I sensed it would be a struggle for Arsenal.
“If I was playing more at City this season then I’d have no regrets. When you’re a player you want to play. It’s not your bank account that matters.
“I’m young and I want to play. Those who say my decision to join City was a financial one aren’t being honest.”
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