I remember it so clearly, we had seen a small genius at work at the Euro’s in the summer of 2008 then there was much in the media that we may sign him. I
Barca had offered €15m for Arshavin, then Spurs came in with a €16m bid but he refused to downgrade from Zenit St. Petersborg to either club. Then on a snowy final day of the TW he signed for us.
I was excited.
But let’s be honest, he never really fitted in, did he? 143 games, a few outstanding performances but not the Boy Wonder we were hoping for. Andrei was 27 when he signed and really should have had a bigger impact because he certainly had the talent.
Highlights: Of course the 4 at Anfield and his brilliant celebration but for most of us it is the winning goal at THOF against Barca. What a night that was ,and what a celebration; taking off his shirt to reveal a T-shirt with an image of his celebration at Liverpool. Do Russians do self-irony?
A loan period at Zenit was Wenger’s response to Arshavin’s weight issues and lack of consistency, followed by a return to Arsenal where he spent much of the 2012/13 riding the pine. A free transfer back to Zenit for a couple of seasons. After that it was all downhill.
Andrei has spent the last 3 seasons in the Kazakhstan PL (sounds a bit Harry Potter) where he was Player of the Season in 2016.
My memories are of a player who never fitted into the system Wenger developed. Arshavin was neither a speedy winger, an Ozil style creator or a Ramsey-like box to box MF. Why did Wenger buy him? Surely not on the strength of one excellent International tournament?
He retires aged 37 with a bundle of cash and a long, fairly successful career behind him, but for me it is a question of “what could have been”? In my opinion he should have signed for Barca and we could have signed Iniesta. Imagine Iniesta alongside a young Fabregas … dreamy.
written by Big Raddy
Arsenal News 24/7
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Cheers, BR.
A wasted talent as you say.
Rumour was Wenger didn’t want to buy him.
Worst moment was when he was on form but left out of an FA Cup semi against the chavs.
A warning against the perils of fast food – what a legacy!
Seems as though no-one at all is interested in Andrei.
We would have been better served by chas’s post 😦
At his best he was brilliant, but it didn’t happen often enough.
As you said, he never really fitted in with the system.
Well done BR, you kept the run going.
Chas
Do you know if the club have to sell all the tickets to a game before I can sell mine on the exchange, I can’t make the spud league game and I am not sure how this works?
It’s now sold out so you should be able to put it on the Exchange.
https://www.arsenal.com/tickets/arsenal/2018-Dec-02/tottenham-hotspur
5.31pm
That’s what’s called a double hour glass figure!
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