Andrei Arshavin is due to play in the Champions League next season with his lucrative pay packet assuming that none of his potential suitors pay the 30m Euros Zenit are asking for the player.
Is Arshavin worth 30m Euros? Hardly. Barcelona have offered 15m and were turned down, it's unlikely that they will give more than 20m so it'll come down to whether a Premier League club come calling with more money or Zenit agree to selling their crown jewel on the cheap.
In my view Zenit have done the right thing in pricing Arshavin so high - for them he could be the difference between success and failure in the Champions League next season.
But will anyone else go for Arshavin?
Arsenal - already getting Nasri, younger and cheaper.
Chelsea - linked with Robinho who would cost roughly the same as Arshavin. The Russian connection makes this a very tempting link and Chelsea have two wide players (Malouda and SWP) who could be considered expendable, even though this is no way to build a team.
Manchester United - Would be a good addition but isn't what we need - if Saha gets fit then yes, maybe, but if he doesn't then the priority would be a taller player who plays in a more central, forward role. Plus United don't need to spend money to buy over-hyped players.
Who else? Liverpool can't afford him, Real will stay focused on Ronaldo, Inter could sneak in with an offer but its debatable whether they will spend 30m Euros on Arshavin when they're offering 10m Euros for an equally important player in Frank Lampard.
Bottom line - Zenit have so far priced Arshavin out of the transfer market. He'll play for Zenit next season unless the club reduce their asking price, which if they do will lead him straight to Camp Nou.
What do you guys think - apart from what we'd 'want' to happen, where is Arshavin most likely to end up?
