THING SPECIAL

Hammers boss Pellegrini backs Nasri to shine again

MANUEL PELLEGRINI has backed Samir Nasri to make amends for his drugs ban shame by returning to top form at West Ham.

The Hammers boss is poised to hand the former France star his debut as a substitute against Birmingham in the FA Cup today.

It will be Nasri’s first competitive game since November 2017 because of a doping ban and at 31 nobody knows how much he has left in the tank.

But Pellegrini insists the ex-Manchester City ace can return to the sort of form which helped him win two league titles at the Etihad.

Pellegrini said: “Is he going to be the same player we saw at Manchester City? I suppose. As he knows this is revenge for him, he is motivated, working hard.

Quality

“He must demonstrate it with his performances. He is a player whose value would be a lot of money but we have to wait for him to play. I trust in him, that’s why he is here.

“Samir has a lot of quality and I am absolutely sure he will be a player that makes a difference. “He is looking very well. He has lost some kilos. Football is like riding a bicycle when you are a small boy – you never forget how to do it. I trust him a lot. “Samir is a very technical player and I am sure he will play in the same way as he did before, I trust what he will give to our team.

“Is this his last chance to do something big? I suppose. He can play four or five years more without any problems.”

Nasri served an 18-month ban after using an IV drip at a clinic in LA while on loan from City at Sevilla in 2016, but is now free to play after signing a shortterm deal at the London Stadium.

Pellegrini added: “I don’t want to talk about whether it was his fault or not his fault. He was involved. I have known Samir Nasri since I was at Manchester City.

“He was a top player in the first year, one of the reasons we won the title was because of him. After that, a lot of young players made a lot of mistakes.

“After speaking to him for a long time about what he was thinking about for the future, I decided to give him an option here at West Ham. Mentally, he is another player with a lot of experience.”

Pellegrini, who insists neither Andy Carroll nor star man Marko Arnautovic will be sold this month, also admitted Jack Wilshere is still weeks away from a comeback after his latest ankle injury.

He said: “We knew he had a problem with his ankle and had surgery some years ago.

“This time it was the other ankle and he was perhaps a little bit afraid that it was broken again.

“But it was not, so we have to be calm and give him time to recover. He has to feel that his ankle has no pain.

“We will see with the doctor and the player, but he still needs some weeks

more.”