Andrei Arshavin says that people can expect a lot from Russian football in the future. For a player of his quality, he is disappointed not to be able to take part on such a big stage, and he believes Russians will continue to be disappointed if there aren't changes made in Russian football.

Speaking to his personal website, Andrei Arshavin said: "We [Russia] need to work on the upbringing of our young players, but this requires good conditions that we practically don't have. Should this change, we will see a lot of new Russian stars.

"In my opinion, on the contrary, there are very few transfers [of Russian players] to the strong European clubs."

Arsenal have already released details of their Away kit (which is yellow and maroon), but the new Arsenal Kit remains an enigma.

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Andrey Arshavin has admitted his frustration after enduring Arsenal's 'pitiful' trophyless season.

"There was nothing special last season for me to think back about," Arshavin told The Sun. "The season was normal - even pitiful."

In contrast, Arshavin heaped praise on league victors Chelsea and compatriot Yuri Zhirkov, admitting their win was well-earned.

"I am happy for Yuri Zhirkov, who won the Premier League with Chelsea," he added.

"They deserved the trophy, as they were the strongest during the season."

Arsenal forward Andrey Arshavin has revealed that Gunners boss Arsene Wenger wants his squad to get plenty of rest this summer, and come back to the club ready to win trophies.

"He wished us luck. Especially to the players who will fly to South Africa," Arshavin told his official personal website.

"Arsene said that it is important to rest well in order to be more successful next season. He stressed that we must take the trophies in the future. At least we beat Tottenham Hotspur.

"We have completed the season. We had to secure the third place in this match. It was easy to play during the first half; we enjoyed our last game at the Emirates this season.

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Andrey Arshavin expects to be available for Saturday's Barclays Premier League clash with Manchester City.

The Arsenal midfielder has been out since sustaining a calf injury against Barcelona last month but his rehabilitation has progressed according to plan.

"I am recovering and I hope to be back for Manchester City," Arshavin told the club's official website.

"This season has been tough and tight. Sometimes it was even difficult for myself and the team but in general it was not bad. Hopefully we will win the last three games," he said.

"We have scored a lot of goals at the end of the games and we managed to stage comebacks - people love having a sports bet on us because it's always such a rollercoaster! We have to use that spirit next season. We can fight again next season. It would be easier for us [if we had not had the injuries]. I can't say we would be champions but it would have been easier for us."

Arsenal star Andrei Arshavin knows full well how important it is his side beat Tottenham on Saturday. The two North London rivals face each other in the Premier League this weekend, and despite being relatively new to the fixture, the Russian international knows how much it means to supporters.

Arshavin told the Premier League's official website: 'For us this is the most important derby and we know it'

'I found out about the importance of these matches almost immediately after I signed for Arsenal.'

'People who work for the club told me about it and about the most memorable clashes with Spurs.'

'They told me that after some defeats they couldn't even speak to each other for a long time, so I'm betting on it being a big game'

Cristiano Ronaldo said “no” when Andrey Arshavin approached him to exchange T-shirts after the game, the Arsenal star recalled in an interview with Russia’s Sport channel.

“I never wanted to exchange T-shirts with anybody,” Arsavin said. “But once my wife asked me to do it with Cristiano Ronaldo, but I couldn’t fulfill her request. Why so? I don’t know, he just didn’t want to exchange T-shirts with me.”

The players met on the field during World Cup 2006 qualifiers, when Russia and Portugal were in the same group, and they may face each other again in this year’s UEFA Champions League.

The Gunners made a huge step towards reaching the group stage of Europe’s top competition after beating Celtic 2-0 in an away game on Tuesday.

“But I acquired Fernando Torres’s uniform after a match with Liverpool,” he added. “I wanted to present it to one of my youth coaches, who collects No. 9 T-shirts.”

Andrei Arshavin scored two goals in the final five minutes, either side of German Pacheco's effort, as Arsenal claimed a 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid in the Emirates Cup.

Arsenal fashioned a host of chances but required the talents of the Russian to secure victory and top spot in the table and it could be a sign of things to come for the season ahead.

Sergio Aguero is a striker out of the very top drawer, but the Atletico man's predatory instincts deserted him early on as he somehow headed against the woodwork after finding space at the back post three yards from goal.

Forward Andrey Arshavin admits that it's going to be a difficult start to the season for him and his team mates as they once again cope with the loss of key players either through transfer or injury.

Top striker Emmanuel Adebayor moved to Manchester City and winger Samir Nasri is out for about 2-3 months with a fracture, and it seems that the Gunners are prepared to let defender Kolo Touré leave as well.

The Gunners must also ensure that they qualify for the Champions League through the qualifying stages, and the games will come thick and fast for Arshavin and his team mates.

Arshavin, who is looking forward to playing a full season with the club he moved to in January, said: "We are heading for a very difficult start of the season. We have four very hard opponents at the beginning of it. Then the Champions League games come.

"Getting to the group stage is one of our main tasks. It won't be easy, but I hope we'll manage to do it.