Arsenal Achieve the Impossible; Agree Arshavin Fee.

It’s always different from the outside looking in, but from these waters it certainly looked as though the Andrei Arshavin saga wouldn’t be concluded until one party wound up dead and the crew from CSI: would be called in to investigate. But as the slogan goes, Impossible Is Nothing, and Arsenal have managed to reach a deal with Zenit for the baby-faced whiner/assassin.

Not that this means Nike should start printing up the kits, though.

The official Zenit website released a statement saying…

“The fundamental understanding over the transfer of the player is achieved between the clubs,” read the statement. “At the moment the basic obstacle in realisation of the transaction is Andrei Arshavin’s personal requirements.”

Which is where the problem lies. The last time Arsenal tried to tap up Andrei even his personal chatterbox/Chief of Chiefly Hyperbole/agent Denis Somethingorother (agents/spawns of Satan don’t need real names) criticized his positively stupifying wage demands (he says “financial appetite”, I say tomahto). Yes, Andrei still wants out of Zenit, but whether or not he’s come back down to earth is another matter entirely.

No indication as to the price, but it damn sure won’t be couch cushion money. The figure of £12m has been floating around; however, considering…

i. Zenit wanted €30m in the summer.
ii. Zenit are saying Arsenal have offered the ‘real market value of the player’.
iii. The pound ain’t exactly enjoying its finest moment. (£1 = €1.06; thus £12m = €12.73m & €30m = £28.3m.)

…you can rest assured it will be higher, and likely by a substantial margin.

But Arsenal have broken down a massive wall in the Free Andrei! movement in the form of Zenit’s fee demands, and all that’s left now is for Arsene & Co. to negotiate Andrei’s weekly food & shelter packet. Suppose that means it’s all still left to do, really.

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Category: English Premier League, World Football