Arsenal a likely beneficiary as Arshavin confirms his western wanderlust
Jonathan Wilson Monday 5 January 2009 13.01 GMT [Guardian]
The problem with being brilliant is that people tend to take it badly when you reject them. A year ago, Andrei Arshavin could probably have left Zenit St Petersburg without too much fuss, but his performances in the Uefa Cup and then the European Championship ended all that. Now, despite a clear drop in form, there are those who condemn his desire to move west as treachery.
"The behaviour of Arshavin causes all communists and patriots to feel shame and disgust," the communists of Leningrad and the St Petersburg region said in a statement released this month, accusing him of "displaying for sale his body for many months in front of covetous Western clubs".
"Andrei – stay!" they urged. "You have not yet lost all your morals, but you are half a step away. [If you join] Tottenham, or any other side, you will lose your spiritual connection with Mother Russia, and the Russian people will never forgive you. Zenit will survive without you, but can you survive without Leningrad, without your homeland?"
The organisation is, it should be said, a faintly ludicrous body – they also accused the actor Olga Kurylenko of "a moral and intellectual betrayal" for appearing in Quantum of Solace and so consorting with that "enemy of the Soviet people", James Bond – but their frustration with Arshavin is representative. If Zenit and most of their fans are keen to see him leave, it is only because his head is so clearly already somewhere else.
In retrospect, it might have been better for all concerned had he left in the summer, as Zenit seem to have expected. They have since denied it, but it is hard to see their signing of the Portuguese playmaker Danny from Dinamo Moscow for a Russian record €30m (currently £28m) as anything other than an attempt to bring in a replacement. Efforts to use the two together have disappointed, and Zenit may now regret refusing to drop their price below £23m.
Zenit's general director, Maxim Mitrofanov, has spoken of a £20m price tag, but a figure of around £15m seems more probable. Mitrofanov has said he expects a formal offer from Arsenal "soon", after discussions between the player and representatives of the two clubs. Arshavin has let it be known that while he would have favoured a move to Barcelona he thinks it would benefit his children to experience life in London, where there is a thriving Russian community and they could learn to speak English.
That initial valuation put off Tottenham, and possibly Barcelona, but talk of a move was enough to unsettle Arshavin. "A professional cannot lack the desire to play when he walks on to the field," he said last month. "I try and play for Zenit the best I can. But I repeatedly told the president of the club that I didn't want to remain in the side any longer. If they don't let me leave, I'll be listed as a Zenit player, but on paper only."
Arguably that has been true for several weeks already: Arshavin has been substituted in five of his last seven appearances, raising concerns about a temperament that is widely held to have been the reason for his comparatively late development – although that criticism can be overblown; just because a player is not seen regularly on Sky or Setanta does not mean he is not playing well. Even Dick Advocaat has been moved recently to speak with pointed diplomacy about "the time being right" for the 27-year-old to prove himself on a foreign stage.
That statement, though, can also be taken at face value, for Arshavin has nothing left to prove in Russia. He made his breakthrough with Zenit as a 19-year-old, established himself the following season and, aside from 2003 when he was frequently used as a substitute, has been a regular ever since. It is possible his Russia career was stalled by the supposed Moscow-centricity of the national team, but his international record is still impressive. Having made his debut in 2002, he has been a key figure for three seasons.
He was Russian player of the year in 2006, Sport-Express player of the year in 2007, when he helped Zenit to their first Russian title, and Sport-Express Player of the Year again this season, after being named man of the match in the Uefa Cup final and twice in Euro 2008. That those performances, against Sweden and Holland, are written off by some in the British media as the only two good games he ever played is absurd.
Yes, it must be a concern for a potential buyer that he was so completely marked out of the game by Marcos Senna in the semi-final, but who was the last English player to conjure comparisons with Michel Platini? Who was the last player of any nationality to play so beguilingly and decisively in successive games? His talent is remarkable.
His character is less certain. It is not just his recent distractedness, or the distant memory of youthful turbulence; Arshavin missed Russia's first two games of Euro 2008 after being sent off seven minutes from the end of their final qualifier – against Andorra – which hardly bespeaks a player in control of his emotions.
And then there is his physique. That seems to be less of a bar to players arriving in the Premier League than it once was, but none of the summer's shorter arrivals – Luka Modric, Giovani dos Santos, Carlos Villanueva, Deco or Samir Nasri – have entirely convinced as yet. Besides which, Arsène Wenger himself expressed reservations about Arshavin's suitability for the Premier League in the summer, asking whether he could "play three games in a row at the highest level".
Perhaps, though, as Arshavin's agent, Dennis Lachter, said, Wenger was merely "acting the cunning fox" in his pursuit. After all, Wenger also said: "When he takes the ball in the final third and creates things, it's something special. If you ask me do I think he will be in the Premier League some day, I would say yes."
Perhaps for his team. Perhaps soon.
Jonathan Wilson Monday 5 January 2009 13.01 GMT [Guardian]
The problem with being brilliant is that people tend to take it badly when you reject them. A year ago, Andrei Arshavin could probably have left Zenit St Petersburg without too much fuss, but his performances in the Uefa Cup and then the European Championship ended all that. Now, despite a clear drop in form, there are those who condemn his desire to move west as treachery.
"The behaviour of Arshavin causes all communists and patriots to feel shame and disgust," the communists of Leningrad and the St Petersburg region said in a statement released this month, accusing him of "displaying for sale his body for many months in front of covetous Western clubs".
"Andrei – stay!" they urged. "You have not yet lost all your morals, but you are half a step away. [If you join] Tottenham, or any other side, you will lose your spiritual connection with Mother Russia, and the Russian people will never forgive you. Zenit will survive without you, but can you survive without Leningrad, without your homeland?"
The organisation is, it should be said, a faintly ludicrous body – they also accused the actor Olga Kurylenko of "a moral and intellectual betrayal" for appearing in Quantum of Solace and so consorting with that "enemy of the Soviet people", James Bond – but their frustration with Arshavin is representative. If Zenit and most of their fans are keen to see him leave, it is only because his head is so clearly already somewhere else.
In retrospect, it might have been better for all concerned had he left in the summer, as Zenit seem to have expected. They have since denied it, but it is hard to see their signing of the Portuguese playmaker Danny from Dinamo Moscow for a Russian record €30m (currently £28m) as anything other than an attempt to bring in a replacement. Efforts to use the two together have disappointed, and Zenit may now regret refusing to drop their price below £23m.
Zenit's general director, Maxim Mitrofanov, has spoken of a £20m price tag, but a figure of around £15m seems more probable. Mitrofanov has said he expects a formal offer from Arsenal "soon", after discussions between the player and representatives of the two clubs. Arshavin has let it be known that while he would have favoured a move to Barcelona he thinks it would benefit his children to experience life in London, where there is a thriving Russian community and they could learn to speak English.
That initial valuation put off Tottenham, and possibly Barcelona, but talk of a move was enough to unsettle Arshavin. "A professional cannot lack the desire to play when he walks on to the field," he said last month. "I try and play for Zenit the best I can. But I repeatedly told the president of the club that I didn't want to remain in the side any longer. If they don't let me leave, I'll be listed as a Zenit player, but on paper only."
Arguably that has been true for several weeks already: Arshavin has been substituted in five of his last seven appearances, raising concerns about a temperament that is widely held to have been the reason for his comparatively late development – although that criticism can be overblown; just because a player is not seen regularly on Sky or Setanta does not mean he is not playing well. Even Dick Advocaat has been moved recently to speak with pointed diplomacy about "the time being right" for the 27-year-old to prove himself on a foreign stage.
That statement, though, can also be taken at face value, for Arshavin has nothing left to prove in Russia. He made his breakthrough with Zenit as a 19-year-old, established himself the following season and, aside from 2003 when he was frequently used as a substitute, has been a regular ever since. It is possible his Russia career was stalled by the supposed Moscow-centricity of the national team, but his international record is still impressive. Having made his debut in 2002, he has been a key figure for three seasons.
He was Russian player of the year in 2006, Sport-Express player of the year in 2007, when he helped Zenit to their first Russian title, and Sport-Express Player of the Year again this season, after being named man of the match in the Uefa Cup final and twice in Euro 2008. That those performances, against Sweden and Holland, are written off by some in the British media as the only two good games he ever played is absurd.
Yes, it must be a concern for a potential buyer that he was so completely marked out of the game by Marcos Senna in the semi-final, but who was the last English player to conjure comparisons with Michel Platini? Who was the last player of any nationality to play so beguilingly and decisively in successive games? His talent is remarkable.
His character is less certain. It is not just his recent distractedness, or the distant memory of youthful turbulence; Arshavin missed Russia's first two games of Euro 2008 after being sent off seven minutes from the end of their final qualifier – against Andorra – which hardly bespeaks a player in control of his emotions.
And then there is his physique. That seems to be less of a bar to players arriving in the Premier League than it once was, but none of the summer's shorter arrivals – Luka Modric, Giovani dos Santos, Carlos Villanueva, Deco or Samir Nasri – have entirely convinced as yet. Besides which, Arsène Wenger himself expressed reservations about Arshavin's suitability for the Premier League in the summer, asking whether he could "play three games in a row at the highest level".
Perhaps, though, as Arshavin's agent, Dennis Lachter, said, Wenger was merely "acting the cunning fox" in his pursuit. After all, Wenger also said: "When he takes the ball in the final third and creates things, it's something special. If you ask me do I think he will be in the Premier League some day, I would say yes."
Perhaps for his team. Perhaps soon.
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