Andrei Arshavin

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Andrei Arshavin
Arshavin and Vermaelen.JPG
Arshavin (left) in training with Thomas Vermaelen
Personal information
Full name Andrei Sergeyevich Arshavin
Date of birth May 29, 1981 (1981-05-29) (age 28)
Place of birth Leningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Height 1.72 m (5 ft 7+1⁄2 in)
Playing position Winger, Striker
Club information
Current club Arsenal
Number 23
Youth career
1999–2000 Zenit St. Petersburg
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2000–2009 Zenit St. Petersburg 238 (51)
2009– Arsenal 24 (11)
National team‡
2002– Russia 50 (16)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 17:03, 5 December 2009 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 17:03, 5 December 2009 (UTC)

Andrei Sergeyevich Arshavin (Russian: Андрей Сергеевич Аршавин; sometimes romanized as Andrey; born 29 May 1981 in Leningrad) is a Russian football forward who plays for Arsenal of the English Premier League and as captain of the Russian national team.

The 2006 Russian footballer of the year is a versatile attacking midfielder who can also play as a second striker or winger. Arshavin garnered much international attention during his performance at the UEFA Euro 2008 championship in Austria-Switzerland which resulted in his inclusion in the Team of the Tournament.[1]

Arshavin has enjoyed a successful start to his career at Arsenal, becoming Premier League Player of the Month in April 2009 and Arsenal's player of the month in March and April 2009. During the 2008–09 season, he scored 6 goals in 12 league appearances for Arsenal. In a match against Liverpool, Arshavin became the first player to score four league goals at Anfield since 1946.[2] Former Arsenal forward Dennis Bergkamp has speculated that Arshavin has "every chance of becoming a favourite of the London fans".[3]

Contents

[edit] Early years

Andrey Sergeyevich Arshavin was born in St. Petersburg, then called Leningrad, on 29 May 1981. He was born to a typical Russian working class family and his father Sergey was a gifted amateur footballer. He came through an accident that could have potentially killed him when he was hit by a car as a child. His upbringing was made a lot harder when his parents divorced when he was aged 12, with Andrei having to sleep on the floor of a cramped flat with his mother Tatiana. It was his father who persuaded him to pursue a career in football after the profession did not work for him. Arshavin began playing football at an early age and at age seven he was enrolled in the Smena football academy of FC Zenit St. Petersburg, his hometown club. As a schoolboy before solely focusing on football, he was a promising draughts player. Arshavin's father died of heart failure at the age of 40.[4][5][6]

[edit] Club career

[edit] Zenit St. Petersburg

Arshavin playing for Zenit

In 2000, he was included in the Zenit first-team squad , making his debut in a 3-0 away win over English side Bradford City in the Intertoto Cup.[7] He played in various positions on the field, starting as a right midfielder, then as an attacking midfielder and finally adopted the second striker's role playing on a flank or behind the target man. He won the Russian Premier League Award for the player of the season largely because of his ability to play well as a winger, playmaker and as a striker.

In the 2007 Russian Premier League season, Shava (Шава in Russian), as he was nicknamed by Zenit fans,[8] guided his Zenit St. Petersburg side to the title, starting all 30 matches — scoring 11 goals and providing 11 assists along the way (he achieved the most assists in the Russian Premier League that year.)[9] It was the club's first league title since claiming the now defunct Soviet Top League in 1984. He was a key player during Zenit's 2008 UEFA Cup triumph and was named Man of the Match in the final. He also became the top assist of that season UEFA Cup.[10]

In October 2008, Arshavin was nominated for the prestigious Ballon d'Or award, along with 29 others including compatriot Yuri Zhirkov.[11]

Arshavin's performances in the UEFA Cup and UEFA Euro 2008 brought him to the attention of several European clubs. However, interest in him existed even before this: in January 2008 there was interest from Newcastle United boss Sam Allardyce but he was sacked as manager as the transfer window began.[12] In June 2008, FC Barcelona had their €15 million offer for the player turned down by Zenit[13]. Tottenham Hotspur's £16 million offer in August also fell short of matching Zenit's £22 million asking price.[14] Zenit's unwillingness to release the player for anything less than the initial asking price caused discontent from both Arshavin, who said the 2008 season was definitely going to be his last with Zenit,[15] and his agent Dennis Lachter.[16]

[edit] Arsenal

Arshavin taking a corner kick

During the January 2009 transfer window, Arshavin was persistently pursued by English Premier League club Arsenal. On the 2 February transfer deadline day, Arshavin had flown into England and was staying in a Hertfordshire hotel, just a few miles from the Arsenal training ground. At around 10am,[17] he left the hotel and was rumoured to be heading back to Russia but, with less than an hour of the transfer window left, a bid from Arsenal was accepted by Zenit. By this point, he had agreed personal terms and passed a medical but a payoff sum by Arshavin himself to Zenit was supposedly holding up the deal.[18] The deal was further complicated by poor weather in England which had delayed the Premier League's registration process, eventually forcing the league to extend the deadline beyond 5pm on 2 February.[19] The deal was not confirmed until the following day, 3 February, nearly 24 hours after the transfer deadline had passed, with Arsenal announcing "a long-term deal" for an undisclosed fee.[20] On the same day, Zenit's official web site claimed that Zenit received an official FA letter confirming Andrei Arshavin's registration as an English Premier League player. He wore the number 23 shirt, last worn by Sol Campbell. Because he played for Zenit in the 2008–09 Champions League, he was cup-tied and could not play for Arsenal in the knockout phase.

Arshavin in action for Arsenal

Arshavin made his debut for Arsenal against Sunderland on 21 February 2009 in the Premier League. The game ended 0–0, though Arshavin was unlucky not to score in the game, coming close twice. Arshavin was substituted in the 61st minute for Carlos Vela. On 3 March 2009, Arshavin made his first contribution to a Premier League game against West Bromwich Albion by setting up a goal for Kolo Touré in the 38th minute, via a free-kick, which was the second goal in a 3–1 victory. On 14 March 2009, Arshavin scored his first Arsenal goal against Blackburn Rovers in the first minute and his second in the 65th minute of the game. He later assisted Emmanuel Eboué on the third goal of the game, ending 4–0 to Arsenal.[21] Arshavin took his goal tally in an Arsenal shirt to three during a 4-1 victory over Wigan Athletic on 11 April 2009.[22]

On 21 April 2009, Arshavin was named man of the match when he scored four goals in a tight match against Liverpool at Anfield, which ended 4–4. It was a thrilling encounter with Arshavin scoring four goals in a game for the first time in his career.[23] He is the first player to score four goals in a single league match at Anfield since Dennis Westcott for Wolverhampton Wanderers in 1946,[24] and is only the sixth player in Premier League history to score four goals in an away match.[25] Arshavin captained Arsenal for the first time on 2 May 2009 in an away match against Portsmouth where they won 3–0 with Arshavin gaining two assists and a contentious penalty.[26] On 8 May, he was named Premier League Player of the Month for April.[27] He was also voted as Arsenal's Player Of the Month for April[28] and came in second in Arsenal's Player of the Season Poll despite only playing in the second half of the season and playing in less than a quarter of Arsenal's matches all season.[29]

The Russian came off the bench to score two goals in Arsenal's 2-1 pre-season victory on 1 August over Atletico Madrid in the Emirates Cup. Arsene Wenger commented afterwards that "[Arshavin] knows how English football works," adding "He knows as well that now he's part of the team from the start. I believe the team knows as well how important (he is) and how big an impact he can have on the results. Earlier in pre-season, Arshavin had scored in a 2-2 away draw with Barnet. "[30] On 26 August 2009, Arshavin scored his first UEFA Champions League goal for Arsenal in the 74th minute in the 3–1 win over Celtic. He scored a 30 yard shot in Arsenal's 2–1 defeat against Manchester United at Old Trafford on 29 August 2009, which was his first goal of the 2009–10 Premier League.[31] In October, he was again shortlisted for the Ballon d'Or award, becoming the first-ever Russian outfield player to earn this distinction twice in the history of the trophy. Later in the same month, he scored in Arsenal 6–2 win over Blackburn in the Premier League. In early December Arshavin put in an excellent display against Stoke City, in which he played an unfamiliar role as centre-forward that was left vacant after Van Persie's injury - he won a penalty which Fabregas missed before scoring himself and later assisted the second goal.

[edit] International career

Arshavin playing for Russia

Arshavin debuted for the Russian national team on 17 May 2002 in a match against Belarus. His first goal with the squad came in a friendly match versus Romania on 13 February 2003. Since then, he has managed to score in every competition which Russia has participated in. He was Russia's captain in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Estonia. On the 11th June 2009 Arshavin was made Russia captain full time by manager Guus Hiddink.

[edit] UEFA Euro 2008

Arshavin was included in Russia's Euro 2008 squad by Dutch manager Guus Hiddink, despite being unable to play in the first two group matches due to suspension.[32] He announced his return by setting up the first goal and scoring the second in Russia's final group game against Sweden at Tivoli Neu, Innsbruck, which helped his team qualify for the next round.

In the next match, the quarter-final against the Netherlands, Arshavin repeated the feat with his part in Russia's two goals in the second half of extra time, providing the cross for Dmitri Torbinski's goal and scoring his own four minutes later. Russia consequently reached the semi-finals with a 3–1 victory. For both of these games, UEFA awarded him man of the match. Arshavin could not repeat the heroics in the semi-final against eventual winners Spain, which Russia lost 3–0. Despite this, Arshavin was named in UEFA's squad for Euro 2008.[33]

[edit] 2010 World Cup qualifying

Arshavin captained the team to a second place finish in their group, scoring 3 goals in ten games. He provided the assist for Diniyar Bilyaletdinov's second goal to seal a 2-1 win over Slovenia in the first leg of the qualification play-offs. Despite this, Russia lost the second leg 1-0, thus knocking them off the World Cup finals on away goals.

[edit] International goals

Scores and results list. Russia's goal tally first.
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 13 February 2003 Tsirion Stadium, Limassol, Cyprus  Romania 3–1 4–2 Friendly
2. 9 October 2004 Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg, Luxembourg  Luxembourg 2–0 4–0 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying
3. 13 October 2004 Estádio José Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal  Portugal 1–4 1–7 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying
4. 30 March 2005 A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia  Estonia 1–0 1–1 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying
5. 4 June 2005 Petrovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg, Russia  Latvia 1–0 2–0 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying
6. 8 June 2005 Borussia Park, Mönchengladbach, Germany  Germany 2–2 2–2 Friendly
7. 17 August 2005 Skonto Stadions, Riga, Latvia  Latvia 1–0 1–1 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying
8. 7 October 2006 Dynamo Stadium, Moscow, Russia  Israel 1–0 1–1 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
9. 15 November 2006 Skopje City Stadium, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia  Macedonia 2–0 2–0 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
10. 9 August 2007 Lokomotiv Stadium, Moscow, Russia  Macedonia 2–0 3–0 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
11. 4 June 2008 Wacker Arena, Burghausen, Germany  Lithuania 2–1 4–1 Friendly
12. 18 June 2008 Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck, Austria  Sweden 2–0 2–0 UEFA Euro 2008
13. 21 June 2008 St. Jakob-Park, Basel, Switzerland  Netherlands 3–1 3–1 UEFA Euro 2008
14. 11 October 2008 Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund, Germany  Germany 1–2 1–2 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifying
15. 15 October 2008 Lokomotiv Stadium, Moscow, Russia  Finland 3–0 3–0 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifying
16. 14 October 2009 Tofik Bakhramov Stadium, Baku, Azerbaijan  Azerbaijan 1–0 1–1 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifying

[edit] Career statistics

(correct as of 5 December 2009)[34]
Club Season League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Assists Apps Goals Assists Apps Goals Assists Apps Goals Assists
Zenit St. Petersburg 2000 10 0 1 1 0 0 3 0 0 14 0 1
2001 29 4 8 5 1 2 0 0 0 34 5 10
2002 30 4 7 3 0 2 4 2 5 37 6 16
2003 27 5 10 3 0 2 0 0 0 30 5 10
2004 28 6 8 4 2 1 8 4 1 40 12 10
2005 29 9 9 3 0 0 13 5 3 45 14 12
2006 28 7 13 4 0 1 0 0 0 32 7 14
2007 30 10 13 2 1 4 14 4 10 46 15 27
2008 27 6 8 1 1 0 6 0 1 34 7 9
Total 238 51 77 26 5 13 46 15 20 312 71 109
Arsenal 2008–09 12 6 7 3 0 2 0 0 0 15 6 9
2009–10 12 5 1 0 0 0 6 2 4 18 7 5
Total 24 11 8 3 0 2 6 2 4 33 13 14
Career Total 262 62 85 29 5 15 52 17 24 345 84 123

[edit] Honours

[edit] Club

[edit] Individual

[edit] Personal life

Arshavin has a son and daughter with his long-term partner Yulia. Although they are not actually married, he calls her his wife. She recently revealed that she and her three-year-old boy Artem were almost killed in a hot-air balloon flight that went wrong in January.[4]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Stephen Brunt. "Russian Star is Born". http://sports.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080621.wspt-brunt-col-21/GSStory/GlobeSportsSoccer. Retrieved 2 April 2009 date=21 June 2008. 
  2. ^ http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/clubfootball/news/newsid=1050155.html
  3. ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/arsenal/5923540/Andrei-Arshavin-admits-Arsenal-are-in-battle-for-fourth-with-Spurs-Everton-and-Man-City.html
  4. ^ a b Ashley Gray. "Ten things you need to know about Arsenal new boy Andrei Arshavin". http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1108703/Ten-things-need-know-Arsenal-new-boy-Andrei-Arshavin.html. Retrieved 28 february 2009 date=3 February 2009. 
  5. ^ "Goal.com Profile: Andrei Arshavin". 2 February 2009. http://www.goal.com/en/news/184/player-profile/2009/02/02/1090741/goalcom-profile-andrei-arshavin. Retrieved 28 February 2009. 
  6. ^ "Arshavin says he'd ban women drivers - as Arsenal's £12m new boy reveals he was nearly killed by a car". 5 February 2009. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1136301/Arshavin-says-hed-ban-women-drivers--Arsenals-12m-new-boy-reveals-nearly-killed-car.html?ITO=1490. Retrieved 28 february 2009. 
  7. ^ Wilson, Jonathan (2007-10-16). "Andrei Arshavin is Russia's artful dodger". The Daily Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?xml=/sport/2007/10/16/sfnrus116.xml. Retrieved 2008-06-22. 
  8. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63akjdAgHn0 (6:05-6:08) MTV Russia. Retrieved on 2009-04-21.
  9. ^ a b http://football.sport-express.ru/russia/premier/2007/statistics/assistances/
  10. ^ http://soccernet.espn.go.com/stats/topassists?league=uefa.uefa&year=2007&cc=4716
  11. ^ "England trio on Euro award list". BBC. 2008-10-19. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/7678835.stm. Retrieved 2008-10-19. 
  12. ^ "Arshavin Eyes Newcastle". sportinglife. 2008-01-01. http://www.sportinglife.com/football/news/story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/07/12/06/manual_084106.html&TEAMHD=soccer. Retrieved 2009-03-21. 
  13. ^ "Barcelona offer 15 mln euros for Russian star Arshavin". RIA Novosti. 2008-06-26. http://en.rian.ru/sports/20080626/112270034.html. Retrieved 2009-01-24. 
  14. ^ "Arshavin's Spurs move 'ruled out'". BBC Sport. 2008-08-29. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/t/tottenham_hotspur/7589344.stm. Retrieved 2009-01-24. 
  15. ^ "I won’t play for Zenit again – Arshavin". Russia Today. 2008-10-07. http://www.russiatoday.com/sports/news/33000. Retrieved 2009-01-24. 
  16. ^ "Zenit are just 'barbaric' says Arshavin agent, as Arsenal deal hangs in the balance". Daily Mail. 2009-01-22. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1126435/Zenit-just-barbaric-says-Arshavin-agent-Arsenal-deal-hangs-balance.html?ITO=1490. Retrieved 2009-01-24. 
  17. ^ "Deadline Day Clockwatch". Sky Sports. 2 February 2009. http://www.skysports.com/football/transfer_clockwatch/0,23710,14896,00.html. Retrieved 2 February 2009. 
  18. ^ "Arshavin agent hopeful over move". BBC Sport. 2 February 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/a/arsenal/7831046.stm. Retrieved 2 February 2009. 
  19. ^ "Premier League extends deadline". BBC Sport. 2 February 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7865432.stm. Retrieved 2 February 2009. 
  20. ^ "Russian international Arshavin joins Arsenal". arsenal.com. 3 February 2009. http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/russian-international-arshavin-joins-arsenal. Retrieved 3 February 2009. 
  21. ^ "Arsenal 4-0 Blackburn Rovers". BBC Sport. 14 March 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7922059.stm. Retrieved 14 March 2009. 
  22. ^ "Wigan 1-4 Arsenal". BBC Sport. 11 April 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7978865.stm. Retrieved 11 April 2009. 
  23. ^ "Liverpool 4-4 Arsenal". BBC Sport. 21 April 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/8000555.stm. Retrieved 21 April 2009. 
  24. ^ "Arshavin stars in Anfield thriller". FIFA. 21 April 2009. http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/clubfootball/news/newsid=1050155.html?cid=rssfeed&att=. Retrieved 22 April 2009. 
  25. ^ Ley, John (22 April 2009). "Liverpool 4-4 Arsenal". BBC Sport. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/arsenal/5199221/Andrei-Arshavin-joins-list-of-four-star-shooters.html. Retrieved 23 April 2009. 
  26. ^ "Liverpool 4-4 Arsenal". http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1176840/Honest-Arshavin-Ref-Mason-wrong-Arsenal-penalty-Portsmouth.html?ITO=1490. 
  27. ^ "Fergie & Arshavin win awards: United boss and Arsenal schemer recognised for April efforts". Sky Sports News. 8 May 2009. http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_5300494,00.html. Retrieved 8 May 2009. 
  28. ^ Arshavin is O2/Arsenal Player of the Month
  29. ^ L, J (06 July 2009). "Arshavin second in Player of the Season poll". Arsenal.com. http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/player-of-the-season-in-second-place.... Retrieved 06 July 2009. 
  30. ^ http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5ijFHLSMupZ6iJUsaHtRbcZSfEm1g
  31. ^ Man Utd 2-1 Arsenal
  32. ^ "Arshavin banned for two Russia games". euro2008.uefa.com. 2007-12-13. http://en.euro2008.uefa.com/news/kind=1/newsid=638098.html. Retrieved 2008-06-25. 
  33. ^ "Spain dominate Team of the Tournament". euro200.uefa.com. 2008-06-30. http://en.euro2008.uefa.com/news/kind=1/newsid=729372.html#spain+dominate+team+tournament. Retrieved 2008-07-01. 
  34. ^ "Andrei Asharvin Profile". Soccernet. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/players/stats?id=22873&cc=5901. Retrieved 2009-04-27. 
  35. ^ http://soccernet.espn.go.com/stats/topassists?league=uefa.uefa&year=2007&cc=4716

[edit] Bibliography

  • Marc Bennetts, 'Football Dynamo - Modern Russia and the People's Game,' Virgin Books, (15 May 2008), 0753513196

[edit] External links

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