Â鶹APP

Photo by Stanislav Vedmid’/StanisÅ‚aw Wiedmid from

Top 10 Remarkable Facts about Samir Nasri

Known for his dribbling, ball control, and passing ability, Samir Nasri is a former French professional footballer. He used to play as an attacking midfielder and a winger.

Nasri was born on 26 June 1987 in Septèmes-Les-Vallons, a northern suburb of Marseille, to Ouassila Ben Saïd, and Abdelhafid Nasri. He began his football career at local youth clubs in his hometown Marseille at the age of nine.

He made his professional debut for Marseille football club in September 2004 as a substitute against Sochaux. Throughout his career, Nasir went on to play for seven European clubs in five different leagues.

Here are the top 10 remarkable facts about him.

1. He is of Algerian Descent

Although Samir Nasri and his parents were all born and raised in France, his family originated from Algeria. His grandparents were originally Algerian nationals but immigrated to France in the mid-20^th century.

Nasri’s father was born and raised in Marseille, and previously worked as a bus driver before becoming his son’s personal manager. His mother was born and raised in Salon-de-Provence and is a full-time housewife.

Sami Nasri initially played under his mother’s surname but switched to his father’s surname after his selection to the France under-16 team. He is the eldest of four children and he is a  Muslim.

2. Nasri Honed his Football Skills Playing on the Streets

Photo by Ronnie Macdonald from

While growing up in La Gavotte Peyret, Nasri regularly played the sport on the streets where he learned many of his skills.  His parents noticed his remarkable talent and signed him up with the local club in his hometown.

He spent one year playing with his hometown club in La Gavotte Peyret before moving to Pennes Mirabeau in nearby Mirabeau at age seven.  It is while Nasri was playing for Pennes Mirabeau, that he was discovered by Olympic Marseille football club scouts.

Nasri was recruited and traveled to Italy with a group of other young players where they participated in a youth tournament.  Upon his return to France, he was admitted into Marseille’s football club academy at the age of nine.

3. He Spent Seven Years in the Marseille club’s youth Academy 

Nasri joined Olympique de Marseille football club academy in 1997. Due to his quick progression, he became an integral part of the club’s youth teams. He won several trophies with the youth team such as the Championnat de Provence, and Coupe de Provence.

After spending seven years developing in the club’s youth academy, Nasri was promoted to the club’s reserve team in the Championnat de France amateur, the fourth division of French football.

He appeared primarily as a substitute in a few matches during the campaign as the reserve team failed to rebound from its bad start to the season, which resulted in a 16th-place finish and relegation to the Championnat de France amateur 2.

4. Nasri Made his Professional Debut at the age of 17

Photo by Larckage from

Nasri made his professional debut for Olympique de Marseille in September 2004 at the age of 17. He became a regular starter in the team and also made his first appearance in the  European competition after playing in the  2005 – 200 UEFA cup.

In the 2006–07 campaign, Nasri won the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Young Player of the Year award and was also named to the Team of the Year.

Samir Nasri spent four French league1 seasons with Marseille making 160 appearances and scoring 12 goals for the club.

5. He won two Premier League titles with Manchester City

Mancini /Nasri/ Aguero Photo by Oldelpaso from

Samri Nasri joined Manchester City on a four years contract from Arsenal on 24 August 2011. The transfer fee was reported to be in the region of 25 million pounds.

He made his club debut on 28 August in a league fixture away to Tottenham Hotspur. He assisted on three goals as Manchester City comfortably won the match by 5 goals to one.

Nasri won his first Premier League trophy in his first season with Manchester City as they were crowned Premier League champions for the 2011–12 season.  He won his second premier league title in the 2013-2014 season as scored the club’s opening goal in their season’s final match against West Ham United. 

6. He is a Member of the “Generation 1987”

Nasri is a member of the group, commonly known as the “Generation 1987” which produced internationals Hatem Ben Arfa, Karim Benzema, and Jérémy Ménez, alongside himself.

Nasri has earned caps with all of France’s youth teams for which he was eligible.  Of the four players, Nasri was the first player to become a regular starter in the under-16 French national teams.

Over the years, the foursome of Nasri, Ben Arfa, Benzema, and Ménez went on to have individual successful careers. They have also represented the French national team in various competitions with Benzema winning the Fife world cup in 2018.

7. He was banned for Breaching WADA Rules

Photo by Brad Tutterow from

On 22 February 2018, Nasri was given a six-month ban from football by UEFA, for breaching WADA rules in December 2016 by receiving an intravenous drip of 500 milliliters of water containing nutrients.

The ban was increased by an extra 12 months following an appeal from UEFA’s ethics and disciplinary inspector. The ban was back-dated to 1 July 2017.

When the sanction ended, Nasri signed a short-term deal with West Ham until the end of the 2018–19 season.

8.  Nasri drew Comparisons to Former French Player Zinedine Zidane

As a result of his versatility, Nasri could play in several positions, most notably as a deep-lying midfielder and a wide midfielder. He was primarily deployed in these positions at both club and international levels.

He was described as a player whose vision and imagination made him an unpredictable opponent. His playing style, ability, and cultural background drew comparisons to former French player Zinedine Zidane.

9. He was named the French Player of the Year in 2010

Photo by Ronnie Macdonald from

For his performances during the 2010 calendar year, Nasri was named the France Football French Player of the Year, edging Chelsea midfielder Florent Malouda and Lyon goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

He became the first Arsenal player to achieve the honor since Thierry Henry in 2006. Nasri was also named Fans’ Player of the Month for the month of December 2010.

10. Nasri is now retired from Professional Football

In September 2021, Nasri revealed to Le Journal du Dimanche that he had retired from professional football at the age of 34. This was after his release from the Belgian football club, Anderlecht, in 2020.

Samir Nasri is Not Married Yet. Previously he was in a relationship with Model Anara Atanes but Split in 2016 after being together for four years. he has an estimated Net Worth of around $22 Million in 2022.