Nasri set for Besiktas move

• Posted on August 29, 2016
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

The Manchester City manager says the Frenchman still has a role to play in his squad but a Turkish delegation is expected to arrive in England on Monday to conclude a move

Samir Nasri is likely to leave Manchester City for Besiktas this week, despite Pep Guardiola’s insistence that he still has a role to play at the club.

Nasri was a surprise inclusion in the City squad for the 3-1 victory against West Ham on Sunday given he had not been involved in any previous matches this season and was left out of the Blues’ list of eligible players for the Champions League play-off round.

The Frenchman was introduced as a second-half substitute and came close to getting on the scoresheet on a couple of occasions, and Guardiola revealed after the match that he is willing to offer him a role in his squad.

“It depends on the player but he can play,” he said, echoing his previous statements about Joe Hart and Yaya Toure, among others. “Samir arrived overweight but after one week, 10 days, it was fantastic how he trained, how he competes.

“His quality is on another level but it depends on him. If [he] wants to help us, wants to stay, wants to be part of something, it depends on him, not me.”

But a Besiktas delegation will arrive in England on Monday and Nasri is expected to return to Turkey to seal a loan deal.

Nasri himself stated to the French media that a move is still possible. The former Arsenal man refused to give any interviews to the British press over what he believes was unfair reporting of his exclusion from first-team training.

-Goal