Arsenal new boy Andrey Arshavin revealed that the player he used to idolise as a young boy is Paul Gascoigne.

The Russian playmaker told the Mail in an interview on Sunday that the charismatic England midfielder was the player he aspired to be as a teenager.

Arshavin said: "I liked Paul Gascoigne a lot. He was an extraordinary person both on and outside the pitch,

"He always remained his own self which, in my opinion, is of utmost importance in every man's life."

And in a somewhat awkward moment, the man who claimed that he had always wanted to play in England and that it was a dream move for him to join the Gunners seemed to be contradicting himself when he said he misses St Petersburg.

"I miss St Petersburg," he reportedly told a Russian newspaper.

"I wish I could take to England the whole of my home city, where I know every little side-street, every set of traffic lights.

"In St Petersburg, I had numerous privileges in my day-to-day life."

Arshavin has yet to score for the English giants but has shown glimpses of his talent which bodes well for Arsenal fans.