MX23RW : Monday, November 25 04:54:55| >> :120:28288:28288:

Samir Nasri: 'Arsenal were robbed against Barcelona in Champions League'

Samir Nasri: 'Arsenal were robbed against Barcelona in Champions League'
© Reuters
Ex-Arsenal attacker Samir Nasri claims that the Gunners were "robbed" in their 2010-11 Champions League last-16 defeat to Barcelona.

Former Arsenal winger Samir Nasri has claimed that the Gunners were "robbed" during their 2010-11 Champions League tie with Barcelona in the last 16.

The ex-France international's final season at Arsenal saw Arsene Wenger's men claim one of the most iconic victories of the Emirates era when they welcomed Pep Guardiola's Barcelona to North London.

One year after being dumped out of the quarter-finals 6-3 on aggregate to Barca, Arsenal were fighting an uphill battle to stay alive in the 2010-11 first leg when David Villa raced through to fire La Blaugrana into a first-half lead.

However, Robin van Persie finished from a tight angle in the second half to level the scores, before a slick passing move ended with Nasri picking out Andrey Arshavin to curl home a stunning winner.

Arsenal travelled to Camp Nou with a 2-1 lead to protect, and Barcelona were on course for a shock elimination after Sergio Busquets's own goal cancelled out a Lionel Messi strike.

Arsenal striker Robin van Persie remonstrates with referee Massimo Busacca in 2011© Reuters

Just three minutes after restoring parity, though, Arsenal controversially went down to 10 men as Van Persie kicked the ball away after the referee had blown his whistle - incurring a second yellow card in the process.

A bewildered Van Persie claimed not to have heard Massimo Busacca's whistle, but the official's decision stood, and Arsenal ultimately bowed out with a 3-1 loss at Camp Nou as Xavi and Messi struck in the second half.

To this day, the decision to send Van Persie off remains a hot-button topic, and speaking during an interview with ZackNaniProd, Nasri has insisted that Arsenal were "robbed" of a place in the quarter-finals.

"We played with an injured [Cesc] Fabregas – who wanted to play anyway, because it's against Barcelona and he was leaving – and Van Persie gets a red card, because he hadn't heard the referee's whistle," Nasri said, as translated by GFFN.

"Try playing with ten men at the Nou Camp, where the pitch feels like twice the size of the one at your stadium, and you already weren't seeing much of the ball. We were robbed in that game."

Samir Nasri warms up for West Ham United on January 2, 2019© Reuters

Barcelona went on to defeat Manchester United 3-1 in the 2011 Champions League final, while Arsenal are still waiting for their maiden top-level European crown.

Nasri - who also lost the 2010-11 EFL Cup final with Arsenal to Birmingham City - spent three years at the Emirates after leaving Marseille in 2008, scoring 27 goals and providing 15 assists in 125 games.

The 35-year-old acrimoniously departed for Manchester City in 2011, winning two Premier League titles and coming up with 27 goals and 40 assists in 176 matches during a five-year stint at the Etihad Stadium.

Nasri also spent time with Sevilla, West Ham United, Antalyaspor and Anderlecht before hanging up his boots in 2021, having also earned 41 caps for the France national team.

ID:511080:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect5825:

Click here for more stories about Samir Nasri

Click here for more stories about Arsenal

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Arsenal celebrate Reiss Nelson's goal against Bournemouth on March 4, 2023
Read Next:
Nelson, Arshavin, Welbeck - Ranking Arsenal's most dramatic Emirates goals
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool1210112481631
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
10Fulham125341717018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd124441313016
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Ipswich TownIpswich121651323-109
19Crystal Palace121561017-78
20Southampton121110924-154


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!