OPINION
When Samir Nasri starred for Manchester City many moons ago, some may have tipped him to become a mainstay at the club.
After all, there is no doubting the ability that he displayed during his time there, and he could have gone on to make a real success of himself at the Etihad.
However, times have since changed, and the 31-year-old could be pulling on the West Ham shirt to take on his former club and teammates on Wednesday night.
Manuel Pellegrini must start him after his return from injury to replace Robert Snodgrass, who has shown signs of his declining form in recent weeks.
If Nasri is started, then he must use the opportunity to stake his claim in the first team once and for all this season, especially if his loan spell expires in the summer.
In the few games that he has played for the Hammers, we have seen glimpses of his magic feet and what we know he is capable of, and he must now demonstrate that fully to prove that he is worthy of a spot in the starting XI on a regular basis.
Snodgrass has played 32 games this season, which is staggering when you think about how he was ousted last season – and even though he was excellent there after, the same cannot be said for his outings recently.
This is something that Pellegrini must recognise as soon as possible, and the manager must start the French playmaker in his place.
He would offer the team a fresh injection of energy and ideas, which is exactly what they need when facing the quality that City possess.
Nasri needs to make the most of the time that he has with the Irons – and the one way of doing that is to dazzle himself into Pellegrini’s first team plans ahead of Snodgrass.
