Yeah the whole Barca hierarchy just went DOH! Can't believe we got Hleb over him.
However, I'm glad he's flourishing at Arsenal because he wouldn't get playing time at Barca. A player of his caliber deserves to play football week in, week out.
Such a shame that such a supremely gifted player took so long to get noticed.
I hadnt heard of him before I saw him with Zenit in the Uefa Cup last year.
He isn't as good as people make him out to be. If he was 25/26 before people outside Russia had heard of him he can't be as good as some make out to be. I'll get criticized for that but it's my opinion and it is the truth. Who actually cares about goal.com ?
Viva I refute your statement. Arshavin is a very technically and physically gifted player. His vision and precsion are amazing. And as far as your theory that "if a player was really a good player he would be noticed by the time he's 25." That really doesn't carry any weight. Just because the general public didn't know about his ability then doesn't mean it didn't exist. Furthermore what is to say he just didn't need some time and experience to gain the confidence to play his football at it's full capacity at the highest level. We're now in the age of many players are peaking in their early 20's and getting worldwide recognition by the time they leave their teenage years. Many people forget that a peak age for a player has been 26-29 for much longer before that.