Armand Traore says he is there to support his friend Adel Taarabt who is struggling with an ankle injury.
The talented Moroccan playmaker failed to secure a move back to AC Milan this summer and has told chairman Tony Fernandes that he wants to make an impact in the Premier League.
Manager Harry Redknapp admits he is concerned that whilst out injured Taarabt could put on some more weight, something Traore believes he needs to keep an eye on.
He said: “I don’t think that Adel eats that much if I’m honest. I just maybe think that sometimes he eats the wrong things – that’s possible.
“It is all about knowledge, in knowing what you can and what you can’t east.
“I know for a fact that I can eat pretty much what I want. I can eat McDonald’s every day and I will have a body fat really low still.
“In fact I am trying to bring my body fat high a little bit, because it is a bit too low.
“He’s the type of guy that needs to look a little bit, he can’t eat pasta everyday, he can’t eat rice everyday – he just needs to watch out for that.
“I think that he went on holiday and he ate a bit too much on holiday. He came back and hurt his ankle and didn’t manage to get pre season on board properly and he is playing catch up.
“This is what friends are here for; it is obviously a difficult time for him. I need to make sure as a friend that he keeps his head right – he doesn’t go out away from footbal1, he needs to stay focused.
“I think he will be alright, he will be fine.”
Traore and Taarabt played alongside each other for France before switching their international allegiance to Senegal and Morocco. He is unsure if the 25-year-old will be given the same freedom to do what he wants in the top flight as he did when he starred in the Championship.
Traore added: “We played at Under-16 level for the French national team so I’ve known him since I was maybe 15.
“It is a bit difficult because he is the type of player that if he really focuses on football I don’t think he will be able to do what he wants.
“You want to see the talent that he has got. I wasn’t there but when he was at QPR that year, I heard that Neil Warnock was letting him do basically what he wants a little bit.
“Some players are different but I think if you have to focus totally on football at some point, it might not work for you at the start but eventually hard work pays off so he needs to just do that I guess.”
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