Arshavin - Deal or NO Deal ?

Andrei Arshavin transfer has another twist in the tale, latest reports suggest that the deal is OFF and the player is going back to Zenit. The reports are believed to have come from Zenit spokesman Alexei Petrov. But, there might be a faint glimmer of hope for the Gunners' fans as nothing has been officially confirmed.

Arsenal seem to have failed to sign Andrei Arshavin from Zenit even though an agreement on the transfer amount and player wages had been was reached. The work permit for the player had also been sorted out.

Some reports also suggested that Arshavin stayed back at Arsenal to have the medical. Although it is true that Arshavin did not go back to Russia and talks were going on, Zenit and Arshavin was not able to reach an agreement on a clause in his contract with them.

Why would the deal fall through ?

Arshavin's contract signed last season with Zenit had a £3m loyalty bonus package which the club demanded back. Arsenal who had already agreed on a £15m did not wanted to spend the extra £3m to land the player.

Arshavin, on the other hand, was ready to pay the £3m, but, want a substantial increase from the already agreed £80,000-per-week wage.

Zenit and Arshavin had talks on the loyalty payment package and Arsenal was involved in it too. But a timely deal has not been done and reports from Zenit suggest that the deal has fallen through.

Zenit spokesman Alexei Petrov said that the deal can't happen at this late moment and no agreement has reached on the loyalty bonus package.

Alexei Petrov said "The deal didn't happen. Arshavin is coming back to Zenit."

How could Premier League's extension of transfer deadline help Arsenal ?

The Premier League had allowed conditional extension of the deadline to the top flight clubs in England. This is because of the heavy snowfall and the disruption in traveling due to it. The clubs if "a deal has been agreed on the transfer" need to let the Premier League know the fact by email to get the extension of the deadline.

Arsenal and Zenit had already agreed on a transfer fee, if Arsenal had emailed the Premier League officials about the need for extension, they could get ample time to continue the talks and sign Arshavin.

But, everything depends on the decision to be made by Zenit. Arsenal and Wenger might not be tempted to take that extra step by increasign the wage budget. Wenger always insist on keeping a tight budget control and he would not want to change that for one player.

He had already made it clear that, Arsenal does not want an instant saviour. The French boss said "We are looking for a team player, not an instant saviour. People love saviours, but we don't want an instant saviour."