Police in the Lobnya region of Moscow have reportedly been called out to a peculiar case involving, or at least in some way involving, the former Arsenal shaper Andrey Arshavin.
The Moscow Times reports, via Ren-TV, that a man in that area had complained to authorities of “being haunted by the ghost of retired Russian football star Andrey Arshavin.”
The individual in question had claimed that a figure “closely resembling [Arshavin] passes through his walls” before attacking him and stealing his money.
37-year-old Arshavin, a native of Saint Petersburg and a former Zenit player, is now retired from the game but found his way into a few other headlines recently.
Images of him leaving a strip club on horseback and riding off into the night - yes, really - emerged last month. He received a bit of stick for that, not least from his wife.
So, while there’s no suggestion that he really is haunting the home of this poor soul, he is certainly still out and about and up to mischief.
Liverpool fans will certainly remember what it feels like to be haunted by the Russian, who starred for his nation in the UEFA Euro 2008 tournament before his move to English football, as Arshavin had a rare old time during his encounters with the Reds.
You’d imagine that one particular encounter springs to, or stings in, the minds of Liverpool faithful. On one extraordinary night at Anfield on 21 April 2009, the enigmatic Arshavin put four past the Reds single-handedly in a 4-4 draw that stunted their title challenge in that season.
