Arsenal are confident of a deal to sign Arshavin this week
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Arsenal 'will go to £15m' to sign unsettled Zenit St Petersburg playmaker Andrei Arshavin
London calling: Arsenal are hoping to complete the signing of in-demand Russian playmaker Andrei Arshavin for a fee in the region of £15m this week
Arsenal are confident of finally agreeing a deal to sign Andrei Arshavin this week, according to sources close to negotiations.
The club are officially unaware of any revised bid for the Zenit St Petersburg playmaker, but it is believed the board have authorised new chief executive Ivan Gazidis to go as high as £15million for the Russian.
Such a fee would still fall short of Zenit's public valuation of £18m, but the Russian club are under pressure from Arshavin to sell, having been told by the player he wants to go and have already signed £30m Portugal midfielder Danny from Dinamo Moscow as a replacement.
Arsenal's opening bid may have been as low as £8m, suggesting that manager Arsene Wenger does not have as much money at his disposal as previously reported.
Windfalls from the sell-on fees for former players Lassana Diarra, David Bentley and Fabrice Muamba should have swelled the kitty, but it seems the Arsenal board have approved bringing forward cash which was earmarked for the summer transfer window.
A successful outcome to the Arshavin saga is important not only for maintaining Arsenal's status as a club capable of attracting and paying for top talent, but also for Gazidis's credibility as a transfer negotiator.
That role used to be performed for so long by former vice-chairman David Dein, a close ally of Wenger who the manager has missed greatly since his unceremonious departure in 2007.