Thursday, March 28, 2024

Azerbaijani clubs keen on Arshavin; Tonev valued at £2m

Arsenal winger Andrey Arshavin is reportedly attracting interest from a host of clubs in Azerbaijan and Australia.

Arsenal winger Andrey Arshavin is reportedly attracting interest from a host of clubs in Azerbaijan and Australia, Sky Sports understands.

According to Yalchin Aliyev, a spokesperson for Azerbaijan Premier League side FK Khazar Lankaran, four clubs in Azerbaijan have the financial capability to sign Arshavin, whose current contract is due to expire at the end of the season, when the transfer window reopens in July.

The list includes FC Baku, Gabala FC, Neftchi Baku PFC and the aforementioned FK Khazar Lankaran.

“At the moment there are only four teams in Azerbaijan who could be ready to pay for such a player as Andrey,” Aliyev told izvestia.ru.

“Apart from Khazar it’s Quabala, Neftci and Baki.

“We have a new coach: the popular John Toshack. At the moment he has to check the squad and decide in which positions he should strengthen the team.”

Arshavin, 31, has not started a single Premier League match for the Gunners this season, with all seven of his appearances coming as a substitute.

The Russia international bagged one goal and five assists in his only two starts of the 2012-13 campaign, against the likes of Coventry City and Reading in the Capital One Cup.

Arshavin has not played since the Gunners’ 2-1 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on 20 January, when he came off the bench for a 15-minute cameo appearance.

Tonev valued at £2m

Bulgaria and Lech Poznań winger Aleksandar Tonev is currently valued at £2 million, Sky Sports reports.

Recent reports have suggested Scottish Premier League giants Celtic are preparing to launch a summer bid for the in-form player.

Meanwhile, Lazio are also interested in Tonev, with the Serie A side having kept tabs on the Bulgaria international for over a year, according to the player’s agent Gianfranco Cicchetti.

It was previously believed that the highly-rated Tonev would cost around £3 million.

Now that Cicchetti has revealed that a deal could be done for as little as £2 million, several clubs will surely express an interest in the 23-year-old Bulgaria international.

Tonev bagged a hat-trick in Bulgaria’s 6-0 rout of Malta in 2014 World Cup qualifying at the Vasil Levski National Stadium last Friday.

“During the winter break, several Italian clubs showed interest in him, but we could not do a deal,” Cicchetti was quoted as saying in the Daily Record.

“Then the price was £1.5m, but after his recent excellent displays and his hat-trick for Bulgaria against Malta, I would say the transfer is close to £2m.

“It’s best to do a deal as soon as possible because that price could rise further if he keeps going like this.

“It’s no secret Lazio are most keen. They have been watching him for over a year.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Shawn Etemadi


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