Zenit St Petersburg insist negotiations with Arsenal over the sale of Andrei Arshavin are on track.

The Gunners have been linked with the Russia playmaker for a number of weeks, with the player said to be willing to buy out his Zenit contract in the summer should the deal stall.

But after an evening of talks, Zenit general director Maksim Mitrofanov revealed details were finally being thrashed out to bring Arshavin to London.

And he claims the two sides are conducting talks without Arshavin's agent, Denis Lachter, who has lobbied very publicly for the transfer to go ahead.

"We are certainly conducting negotiations directly with the Arsenal chief executive," Mitrofanov told Sport Express.

"The footballer's agent (Lachter) is not taking part in them.

"Because of this he simply does not know all the details of the process of negotiation, and in this sense his comments should not always be trusted.

"As regards the process itself, as I have already said, it is not simple, but it is moving and we hope that it will lead to its logical conclusion."