Andrey Arshavin: farewell from a talented but frustrating enigma

The Russian retires after three years in Kazakh obscurity and his career is hard to define: did he under- or over-achieve?

A little magic hung in the air during Andrey Arshavin’s first morning in London but it was thick with uncertainty, too. Islington was covered in snow, its streets subdued to muffled stillness, and the only noise swirling around Arsenal was not the kind their fans wanted to hear. Negotiations to sign the in-demand forward had been dragging on for weeks but now, on deadline day, news bulletins suggested they had faltered. Arshavin was seemingly on a plane back to St Petersburg so Arsenal, thin on fit attacking options and trailing fourth-placed Aston Villa by five points, would have to struggle on with that they had.

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