Qatari club Al Sadd are optimistic of beating Zenit to the signature of Russian midfielder Andrei Arshavin following the capture of Spanish legend Raul this summer.
The ambitious Doha based club have been interested in the little Russian and are likely to offer a more lucrative deal as compared to Zenit. But it is highly unlikely that Arshavin will turn down the chance to move back to his former club as he is keen to play at the highest level.
The 31 year old struggled to adapt to the rigours of the English game ever since his move to Arsenal back in 2008 and the manager has finally decided to ship him off this summer. Arshavin spent the second half of last season on loan at Zenit where he was largely disappointing. The fall out between the Russian fans and their captain after the shocking defeat to Greece in the Euros almost put off the deal.
However, Zenit have decided to sign him this summer and their Italian boss Luciano Spaletti was all praise for the Gunner reject.
Boss Luciano Spalletti said: ‘He is one of the players who can strengthen Zenit. When a team win the league by almost 15 points you need to look for players like that.’