by CARL ELDRIDGE Samir Nasri is nudging Arsene Wenger in the direction Udinese’s Mehdi Benatia — so says the Moroccan defender. Benatia, 23, played with Nasri in the Marseille youth team and is still in touch with the France international.
And Benatia has revealed that Nasri has asked AW to take a closer look at him as the club seek a stand-in for TV5, who has been out with an Achilles injury since September. “My friend Nasri wants me in London with Arsenal. We’re great friends. We got to know each other in Marseille where we shared a room,” Benatia told Gazzetta Dello Sport.
“He wants to do it. When I was in France, at a small club, he said to me ‘I am going to talk to Arsene Wenger’. And I told him that he was crazy, but now he is more decisive.” Benatia’s impressive performances have attracted the interest of several clubs across Europe, and he has been linked with moves to both England and Spain this season.
Meanwhile, AW is said to be poised to sign Dutch wonderkid Stefan de Vrij, despite the Feyenoord youngster revealing that his first choice would be a move to Barcelona. As we know, we are desperately short of cover in the centre of defence, after injuries to TV5 and Johan Djourou left us with just Sebastien Squillaci and Laurent Koscielny as our only fit options.
But AW is not looking for a quick fix, instead opting to stay true to his policy of signing young prospects with a future in the game. And it is reported that he has now made 19-year-old De Vrij his number one target, after witnessing the youngster impress in the Eredivisie.
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