Arsenal
Director Claims Forward Snubbed Deadline Day Move
Zenit St Petersburg director Maxim Mitrofanov claims Arsenal forward Andrei Arshavin turned down the chance to return to the club on Thursday’s deadline day
Despite the transfer window being closed, there is always transfer gossip doing the rounds in the papers and we’ll keep you up-to-date with the latest news during the coming months. Today, Andrei Arshavin blocked a move to Russia.
Zenit St Petersburg claim Arsenal forward Andrei Arshavin turned down the chance to return to the club, according to the Daily Mail.
Arshavin has fallen out-of-favour at Arsenal after struggling to find his form the Emirates and spent the second half of last season on loan at his first club, Zenit St Petersburg.
A permanent summer move away from north London seemed a certainty and Zenit, Dynamo Moscow and CSKA Moscow were all keen on taking him back to his homeland.
The 31-year-old is in the final year of his contract and Arsene Wenger was so desperate to get him off the books, he was prepared to let him go on a free transfer this summer.
Zenit were close to landing the player on Thursday’s Russian transfer deadline day after agreeing terms with the Gunners. However, it seems the move collapsed after Arshavin pulled the plug, much to the bemusement of the Russian champions general director Maxim Mitrofanov:
‘We’d been talking about (a free transfer) with Arsenal for a long time. It was one of two absolute conditions for us,’
‘Only Arshavin himself knows the second condition.’
Mitrofanov is quoted as saying in the Daily Mail
Dynamo Moscow manager Dan Petrescu also revealed Arshavin had turned down a move to the Russian capital. Saying:
‘I wanted him, but he said no.’
Petrescu is quoted as saying in the Daily Mail
It appears Arshavin has decided to stay with Arsenal and fight for his place in the team to either win himself a new contract at the Gunners, or become a free agent at the end of the season.
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