Euro 2012: Samir Nasri targets journalist in foul mouthed tirade

Samir Nasri launched a foul-mouthed tirade against a French AFP journalist when asked what he thought of France's 2-0 defeat by holders Spain in the European championship quarter final here on Saturday.

The player, who during France's opening group game with England mouthed "shut your mouth" to television cameras in a message aimed at a L'Equipe journalist who had written a critical article of him that upset his sick mother, also suggested the two go outside the mixed zone and settle the matter.

Having already passed through the mixed zone without speaking, the 24-year-old Manchester City star returned around 30 minutes later whereupon the AFP journalist politely asked for his impressions of the game.

Visibly agitated, Nasri launched into a diatribe against the media.

"No, in any case, you are always looking for shit, you write nothing but shit in your papers."

The journalist interrupted him asking him not to make that allusion and reminded him that he had done an interview with him on February 28 and which had been appreciated by the player.

However, undeterred Nasri continued his rant whilst walking towards the exit, becoming more and more aggressive and violent in his language.

The AFP journalist in order to put a stop to the tirade replied: "Alright then get lost if you have nothing to say."

A few seconds later Nasri returned and accosted the journalist.

"You told me to get lost, alright come with me and we will settle it outside."

The journalist replied: "Yeah right."

This provoked Nasri to launch into an even more personal and violent attack.

"Go f*** yourself, go f*** your mother, you son of a bitch. You want us to have it out, go f*** yourself. There, like that you can now write that I am badly brought up," he said before leaving the mixed zone.

Aside from the controversy over his reaction to scoring the goal against England and this outburst, Nasri had already been implicated in an internal bust-up.

France's final group match, which they lost to Sweden, was reportedly marked by a dressing-room bust-up, with coach Laurent Blanc clashing with Hatem Ben Arfa and Alou Diarra said to have been involved in an angry exchange of words with Nasri.

But the French camp waved away any suggestion of ill-feeling or comparisons with an infamous player mutiny against former coach Raymond Domenech in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.