Source: Telegraph
Arsenal 'on the brink' of Andrei Arshavin deal
The 27-year-old has made no secret of the fact he wants a move to the Premier League, and despite Arsenal's first offer being considered "insufficient", the latest news from Zenit St Petersburg suggests a deal could soon be completed. [LNB]The Sun[LNB] quotes a source close to the Russian club as saying: "Negotiations between the clubs about Arshavin are continuing. Since both sides want to be successful, we should expect a good outcome soon - and certainly before the end of the transfer window."[LNB]Over the weekend Zenit spokesman Alexei Petrov confirmed the first bid and said: "Zenit did get an official offer from Arsenal about Andrei Arshavin. It was rejected as insufficient. [LNB]"They offered about £10 million. No new offers have arrived from them since. At the moment, Arsenal are the only club to have approached us about the player." [LNB]Wenger is said to have asked his director Danny Fiszman and chairman Peter Hill-Wood to release a little more cash in order to up the bid, but is also hopeful that given the financial fragility of so many European clubs, Zenit will be willing to lower their valuation. [LNB]Arsenal face a potential crisis in the next six months with three of their key players - Theo Walcott, Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie - all in need of contract renewals. [LNB]There is widespread speculation that Fabregas will be lured away by Barcelona where he started his career as a youth team player. Their coach, Pep Guardiola has a strong relationship with the 21-year-old and made moves to sign him last summer. [LNB]Van Persie, also attracting attention from the Spanish club, has six months remaining on his contract. While Theo Walcott, though signed until 2010, is said to have been waiting for talks to start since October. [LNB]
