Andrey Arshavin

Andrey Sergeevich Arshavin - Russian footballer, ex-captain of the Russian national team, Honored Master of Sports of the Russian Federation. He played in the positions of an attacking midfielder, second striker and playmaker.

The biography of Andrei Arshavin is filled with various interesting facts from sports and personal life.

So, before you is a short biography of Arshavin.

Biography of Andrey Arshavin

Andrey Arshavin was born on May 29, 1981 in Leningrad. His father, Sergei Arshavin, was fond of football, playing for an amateur team.

Andrey's parents divorced when he was 12 years old. It is worth noting that it was the father who prompted his son to pursue a career in football after he himself did not become a professional footballer.

Childhood and youth

Arshavin started playing football at the age of 7. The parents sent the boy to the Smena boarding school.

An interesting fact is that while studying at school, Andrei was fond of checkers.

Later, he even managed to get a youth rank in this sport.

Nevertheless, the older Andrei got, the more he liked football. At the time of his biography, his favorite club was Barcelona.

In his youth, Arshavin graduated from the St. Petersburg University of Technology and Design.

It is curious that even as a popular athlete, he repeatedly developed clothing collections for the sake of pleasure.

Football

Andrei Arshavin's football career began with the Smena youth team. He started playing for the main team at the age of 16.

After 2 years, the scouts of the St. Petersburg Zenit drew attention to the promising player. As a result, at the age of 19, Andrei already defended the colors of one of the most popular clubs in Russia.

Arshavin began to actively progress in the 2001/2002 season under the guidance of mentor Yuri Morozov. Andrey was named the opening of the year and the best right midfielder.

In 2007, Arshavin became the captain of Zenit. The following year, he and his team were able to win the UEFA Cup, which became one of the most memorable episodes in his biography. During the years spent at Zenit, he managed to score 71 goals.

Andrey started playing for the national team in 2002 and soon was able to gain a foothold in the first team. In total, he played 75 matches for the national team, scoring 17 goals.

In 2008, Russian footballers, including Andrei Arshavin, were able to win bronze in the European Championship.

Over time, European grandees showed interest in Arshavin. In 2009 he moved to Arsenal London. The British press reported that according to the contract the club paid the Russian £ 280,000 a month.

Initially, Andrei demonstrated a great game that made him the star of world football. Many fans remember the match between Arsenal and Liverpool, which took place in 2009.

In this fight, the Russian forward managed to score 4 goals, thus making "poker". And although the match ended in a draw, Andrey received a lot of flattering reviews from football experts.

Over time, Arshavin was less and less included in the main team of the "Gunners". Moreover, he was not always trusted with a place in the double. Then rumors appeared in the press that the player wanted to return to Russia.

In the summer of 2013, Zenit announced the return of Andrei Arshavin. He played for the St. Petersburg team for 2 more years, but his game was no longer as bright and useful as before.

In 2015, Arshavin moved to Kuban, but left the team less than a year later.

The next club in the sports biography of Andrey Arshavin was the Kazakhstani "Kairat". It is curious that the Russian footballer was the highest paid player on the team.

Playing for "Kairat", Arshavin won a silver medal in the championship of Kazakhstan, and also won the country's Super Cup. In this club, he spent 108 matches, scoring 30 goals.

Personal life

In 2003, Andrei Arshavin began courting TV presenter Yulia Baranovskaya. Soon, young people began to live together. Their relationship lasted 9 years.

Andrey and Yulia had a daughter, Yana, and 2 sons, Artem and Arseny. It is worth noting that the footballer left his actual wife when she was pregnant with Arseny.

Later, Baranovskaya achieved the payment of alimony from Arshavin in the amount of 50% of all the man's income.

When Andrei became free again, rumors about the player's relationship with different girls often appeared in the press. Initially, he was credited with an affair with the model Leilani Dowding.

Later it became known that the star striker began dating journalist Alisa Kazmina. In 2016, the couple played a wedding, and soon they had a girl named Esenya.

In 2017, the couple wanted to leave, but the marriage was still saved. Divorce could have occurred due to frivolous behavior and frequent betrayals of Arshavin. At least that's what Kazmina stated.

In January 2019, Alice admitted that they had divorced Arshavin long ago. She also said that she no longer had the strength to endure her husband's endless betrayals.

Andrey Arshavin today

In 2018, Arshavin announced the end of his professional football career.

In the same year, Andrei made his debut as a sports commentator on the Match TV channel.

In 2019, Arshavin was able to obtain a category C coaching license at the Center for Advanced Training of Coaches.

The football player has his own account on Instagram, where he periodically uploads photos and videos. As of 2019, over 120 thousand people have subscribed to his page.