Andrey Arshavin: The Story of What Went Wrong at Arsenal

Andrey Arshavin could be set to retire from football this summer at a mere 32 years old, if recent reports (via Metro) are to be believed.

Arshavin's story is an interesting and complex one, one that all started in January of 2009. Kolo Toure requested a transfer, and Arsenal had a massive need for another central defender.

Instead, they got Andrey Arshavin.

It was a typical Arsene Wenger move. One little defensive signing and the team might get that last little push to finish atop the league.

Of course, despite the obvious fan demands, the sage Frenchman opted for the literal opposite: an elfin, technical winger who barely stands 5'8" and refuses to devote much of his energy to defending.

Initially, it looked like another entry to the list of Wenger's doubted but ultimately shrewd transfers. Arshavin proved to be a scintillating talent immediately, capping a sublime first-half season at Arsenal with a breathtaking quartet of goals in the Gunners' 4-4 draw against Liverpool.

Despite arriving in February, 2009 and featuring in less than a quarter of Arsenal's games, he finished second place in the team's Player of the Season poll. It truly looked like Arsenal had found a player who could change a game at a moment's notice.

And then he started to slip.

Twelve goals in 39 games in 2009-10 was certainly a decent return, but Arshavin was not nearly as dynamic or threatening as he had been the season before.

The next season, he was given even more time on the pitch, but scored fewer goals (10) in many more games (52). Although he provided 17 assists, 11 of which were in the Barclays Premier League, Arshavin's performances grew more lackadaisical. He looked less interested.

Something had changed for the Russian that season. I remember thinking at various points about how ineffectual he seemed on the pitch, and how incomplete the statistics were as a barometer of his performances.

Arshavin's ability with the ball at his feet is, and always has been his principal skill. But even though he was not purchased to defend, per se, he seemed unable or unwilling to do the grittier aspects of his job.

He appeared in all but one of Arsenal's games, but, other than that one magic goal against Barcelona, failed to consistently replicate his initial purple patch.

Last season, it all fell apart.

Arshavin was essentially relegated to the role of a cup player, starting in only eight Premier League games, almost all of which were at the beginning of the season.

Despite the fact that Arsenal were involved in a bitter scrap with Tottenham for Champions League qualification, he was shipped off to Zenit St. Petersburg on loan. Arsenal got the job done without him.

And this year, Arsene Wenger has simply frozen him out completely. With exactly zero starts and seven substitute appearances to his name, it is clear that the manager has absolutely lost faith in a man who has shown himself to be one of the most talented players on the team.

Recently, Wenger essentially confirmed that Arshavin would leave during the summer, while also attempting to defend his beleaguered winger.

Via ESPN.co.uk:

"

He is at the end of his contract at the end of the season and then he will decide what to do, but I don't think he will stay here because he doesn't play enough.

I must say publicly that I give him credit. He is working absolutely every session 100 per cent commitment and he is an example to everybody because he has been questioned about his commitment. If you see him every day, you would respect him for his commitment.

"

Unless Arshavin has greatly deteriorated away from view, this simply does not make sense.

Consider Lukasz Fabianski: The goalkeeper obviously has talent, and obviously worked hard enough after returning from injury earlier this season to deprive Arsenal's No. 1, Wojciech Szczesny, of his starting spot.

We have seen Arshavin's supreme ability before; we know it's there. If he was truly setting an example with his work ethic and commitment to excellence, Wenger would not be able to keep him out of the team.

As Andrew Mangan of Arseblog said recently:

"

But talent only gets you so far. ... Someone like Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, for example, of whom Arsene Wenger waxed lyrical about his football ability, but who is now playing for Ipswich because he thought his skill was all that mattered. Compare to someone like Ray Parlour who knew that he was never the most technically gifted player ... but became important to the team because of his hard work which helped those around him to flourish.

"

It is also worth noting that Arshavin had the opportunity to get more playing time with Reading on a six-month loan deal earlier this season but rejected it, according to Arseblog News.

Perhaps Arshavin's story can be viewed as the paradigm for the overpaid, cushioned modern footballer—especially at Arsenal, which continues to be affiliated with the likes of Denilson, Nicklas Bendtner and Sebastien Squillaci, who is still at the club.

The reality is that the little Russian who once could is being paid a comically inflated salary at a club that offers him every undeserved comfort. Arsenal will be very happy to get him off the books this summer.

If the club learns to be more cautious about the players it signs to lucrative contracts, it will have at least derived something from a totally botched piece of business.

But, ultimately, Arshavin has wasted his incredible talent like few other footballers in recent memory.

Follow @charliemelman