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"Arsenal have finally announced the signing of Russia playmaker Andrei Arshavin vrom Zenit St Petersburg.\nAfter weeks of wrangling the Gunners agreed a deal for the player with Zenit just minutes before Monday&#8217;s 5pm transfer deadline.\nAndrei Arshavin&#8217;s protracted transfer to Arsenal is now completed\nHowever, the late nature of the agreement meant they had to wait until today for the move to be ratified by the Premier League.\nThat has now been forthcoming and the 27-year-old has joined for an undisclosed fee, signing what Arsenal are calling a &#8216;long-term&#8217; contract.\nThe Gunners were forced to delay naming Arshavin as their player until late this afternoon as it was one of a number of transfers awaiting approval by the Premier League board because of administrative delays caused by the severe snow which crippled London&#8217;s transport networks yesterday.\nHowever, when asked if he was an Arsenal player, the Russian international told his personal website this morning: &#8216;I think so. The negotiations came to a close and there will be details [on Tuesday].\n&#8216;Now I can say only one thing &#8211; that if I play for Arsenal, it will be at number 23.&#8217;\nZenit&#8217;s official website also maintained the deal had been completed, although they credited a Russian news agency for the story.\nWhile Arshavin could make his debut in Sunday&#8217;s north London derby at Tottenham, given the Russian domestic season finished in November, the player is more likely to be allowed some time to build up full match fitness.\nArsenal currently lie five points adrift of fourth-placed Aston Villa after successive lays Premier League draws against Everton and West Ham."
<https://metro.co.uk/2009/02/03/arshavins-arsenal-deal-finally-confirmed-414165/>