Nasri hails French connection

Nasri: Revived title hopes

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Samir Nasri believes Arsenal's French connection could steer them to the Premier League title.

Arsene Wenger fielded six of his compatriots in the side that revived Arsenal's title hopes with a 2-1 win over defending champions Manchester United.

The Gunners have been beaten by newly-promoted Hull and Stoke this season but Nasri, who scored both goals against United, insists those setbacks did not dent the belief amongst Wenger's young squad.

"We are back in it, but we always thought we were involved, even before this game," he said. "We can definitely win the title this season.

"Mentally we proved a point by winning this game against Manchester United. We know the title can be won by the games against the top four.

"With all the players coming back from injury we are only going to get better," added the 21-year-old.

"We were a bit behind Liverpool and Chelsea and this was a massive game for us.

Maturity

"Maybe we don't have the experience of Liverpool, United or Chelsea, but we showed how mature we have become after last season. We showed we have got the quality technically that can help us to win big games."

Besides Nasri, the other France internationals in the Arsenal line-up were Gael Clichy, Abou Diaby, William Gallas, Bacary Sagna and Mikael Silvestre.

"It seems like a French team," said Nasri. "The manager is French, we have African players who speak French and there is a lot of French talking everywhere.

"In France we consider Arsenal as the 21st team in our league.

"I used to watch Arsenal on TV when Robert Pires, Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry were there.

"I think Arsene is one of the best in the world and it is an honour to play under him," he added.

"He is very affectionate with his players and tells you the truth when he signs you."