Samir Nasri recalls Champions League campaigns with Arsenal

Samir Nasri’s tell-all interview on “Zack en roue libre” tonight notably saw the former France midfielder recall some of his Champions League campaigns from his time at Arsenal, where he first made his name in England before his move to Manchester City in 2011.

The 35-year-old, who now works as a pundit for French broadcaster Canal+, discusses his first season at the club, which saw the Gunners reach the semi-finals in Europe before falling to Manchester United. Arsène Wenger’s men, who saw off Milan and Villarreal in the knockout stages on the way to the last four, would lose 1-0 at Old Trafford in the first leg. Nasri – a regular in the team for his first season – sets the scene for the return match:

“It was the first time I’d seen the Emirates with such a crazy atmosphere, you had flags everywhere and all! When you go into a match with shivers down your spine, you can feel you’re going to have a great game. And we s**t ourselves. We s**t ourselves, and we came up against a great Cristiano Ronaldo.”

The Portuguese forward would score a double – including an iconic long-range free-kick – as the visitors went 3-0 up within an hour, with Robin van Persie scoring a consolation for Arsenal. Alex Ferguson’s men, at that stage the reigning champions, would go on to lose to Barcelona in the final

GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin