Former Arsenal and Manchester City midfielder Samir Nasri announces retirement from football at the age of 34.
He has revealed that his 2018 ban for a doping violation was a major factor in his decision.
Nasri was a key player for Arsenal, but left to play a major role in Manchester City’s first Premier League title win in 2012.
His five year spell at the club also saw him lift a second league title alongside a League Cup. His most recent football venture has been with former Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany‘s Anderlecht side.
Samir Nasri Announces Retirement at 34-Years-Old
Lack of Motivation for New Challenges
The French midfielder only played seven times for Anderlecht before the season was disrupted by Covid-19. Nasri also added that his motivation was gone. He revealed he would only have returned to France with Marseille.
Nasri told Le Journal du Dimanche (via RMC) “”I came back to West Ham (United), London, with a coach I knew (Manuel Pellegrini): It was perfect. But I got injured three times in a row. There, Vincent Kompany called me to come to Anderlecht. There was an emotional side, but also the idea of being a player and also a little in the staff. As I would like to coach, I told myself that I would learn with him. It didn’t go as planned. Then the championship was stopped because of the Covid.
“After that, I didn’t necessarily want to. No challenge has kicked me. And I couldn’t see myself coming back to France if it wasn’t at OM.”
Samir Nasri’s Broken Relationship With Football Prior to Retirement
Nasri also said that the issues around the drip treatment scandal was the one of the biggest reasons as to why he couldn’t look at football the same way.
In February 2018, Uefa handed him an 18-month ban after Nasri was deemed to have broken WADA’s anti-doping regulations.
Nasri added to Le Journal du Dimanche (via RMC): “An episode hurt me very badly and changed my relationship with football: my suspension.
“I found that more than unfair, I had not taken any doping product. It was just an injection of vitamins because I was sick. It cut me off in my tracks.”
Nasri scored 36 goals in 220 Premier League appearances. The Frenchman scored five goals in 44 international appearances.
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