"They have enough players there now," Arsene Wenger said back in 2012, when speculation linking star striker Robin van Persie with a move to Manchester City first cropped up. "Am I flattered? More worried. But it's a little bit of a normal process."
In recent times, culminating in Bacary Sagna's transfer 11 months ago, Arsenal have seen an array of their talent jump ship to fellow Premier League title rivals City. The French full-back joined compatriots Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri in making the move, while Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure did likewise.
It was the transfer of Nasri, though, which was particularly hard to take at the time. During his three years in North London, the midfielder found the net 18 times while also proving to be a real creative threat in attack. Fresh on the back of signing prodigious young talent Aaron Ramsey, Wenger delved back into the market by splashing out £12m to land the skilful schemer from Marseille.
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At the time, the then-21-year-old had already made a breakthrough in the France national side, earning two caps in that summer's Euro 2008 tournament, while at club level his performances saw him named the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year for 2006-07. The buzzword used by Wenger at the time was "potential".
The potential to turn from a good, young player into an "outstanding one." Four years after first being linked with the youngster, Wenger finally had his man when he penned a four-year deal with the Gunners on this day in 2008. The respect was clearly mutual, with Nasri admitting upon signing that his countryman was the reason behind him parting company with Marseille.
"The fact that Arsene Wenger gives great opportunities to young players is very important for me," he told the club's official website at the time. "Arsene has a great reputation and he is one of the best managers in the world. He has proved that he puts a lot of confidence in the young players and he gives them a chance.
"It was very important for me to have such a great manager to work with and I'm really looking forward to working with both Arsene Wenger and all my new teammates."
A match made in heaven, then, which was clear to see instantly as the Pennes Mirabeau youth product struck on his Premier League debut on the opening weekend of the new season.
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Showing the type of movement which made him so sought after at Marseille, Nasri latched on to Denilson's cutback to lash home what proved to be the winning goal just four minutes into his first start, becoming the 83rd player in Prem history to notch on his debut in the process.
The love affair continued. Goals against FC Twente in Champions League qualification and a double in a memorable 2-1 victory over Manchester United followed before mid-November, making this one of the great Wenger bargains. Five assists and seven goals in all, 2008-09 proved to be a fine return for the Frenchman in what was his maiden campaign away from home shores.
Having broken his leg during a pre-season tour of Europe the following summer, Nasri's Arsenal development was curtailed somewhat, but still the impressive performances were produced. The pick of his goals came in a Champions League tie against Porto, in which he dribbled his way through three opposition players before tucking the ball home from a tight angle.
The strike was soon compared to other great goals from the likes of Ricky Villa, John Barnes and Archie Gemmill through the ages, but it was not all well for Nasri after he was omitted from the national side's World Cup travelling party. This made him more determined than ever to recapture his best form.
"I was very frustrated last season, being injured early on," he told L'Equipe. "I needed time to get back to my best level. Then I wasn't called up for the World Cup. I missed football for two-and-a-half months. I had a lot of time to rest and ask myself questions. I am not hungry now, I am starving."
True to his word, the attacking midfielder indeed managed to push on a step further, despite injury once more striking at the start of the campaign. Nasri was now adding more goals to his game, too, scoring seven in the same number of outings - including in three successive matches - to help earn recognition in the international fold once again.
Nasri picked up the PFA Fans' Player of the Month award three times in four months in the first half of that true breakthrough campaign, in a year that would end with him also being crowned the French Footballer of the Year. Gareth Bale may have pipped him to the domestic honours, but he could be more than happy with his achievements overall.
Then, on August 24 2011, it was time for Nasri to become just one of the many on the conveyor belt of talent who opted to swap North London for Manchester. Following much negotiating, a fee of around £25m was finally agreed. The Citizens' latest recruit could not help but have a dig at his former club, though, admitting that he was looking forward to playing for a side with "more passionate" supporters.
The exodus of Nasri was certainly tough to take for Arsenal fans, especially on the back of his most impressive campaign to date in a red and white shirt. But the often controversial star will point to his two Premier League title winner medals as proof that he ultimately made the right choice in the end.
Daniel Lewis
