• Premier League

Nani's Zenit switch thwarted by wage demands

Kevin Palmer
September 7, 2012
Zenit St Petersburg's attempts to sign Nani fell through © PA Photos
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Zenit St Petersburg's attempts to sign Manchester United winger Nani collapsed due to the Portuguese winger's "unreal" wage demands, according to officials at the Russian club.

United chiefs were willing to part with Nani after he has slipped down the pecking order in Sir Alex Ferguson's plans, but Zenit director-general Maxim Mitrofanov says they did not come close to agreeing personal terms with the 25-year-old.

Zenit's lavishly expensive deal to sign Hulk from Porto has been the talk of European football in recent days, but it seems that Nani was demanding even more cash than the Brazil forward.

"If Hulk had demanded €8 million to €10 million a year, these conditions would have been unacceptable for Zenit," Mitrofanov said. "The transfer of Nani failed mostly due to this reason, as he asked for an enormous salary and we would not pay him."

The collapse of the deal leaves Nani in limbo at United, with the club's desire to offload him suggesting he may struggle to force his way back into Ferguson's first-team plans. It is reported that his agent had been demanding a £130,000-per-week deal to keep his client in Manchester.

Meanwhile, Zenit also failed in their bid to bring Arsenal's Andrei Arshavin to St Petersburg in the hours before the Russian transfer window slammed shut on Thursday night, leaving the winger out in the cold for club and country after he was dropped by new Russia boss Fabio Capello.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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