Papadopoulos rejects Zenit

Schalke defender Kyriakos Papadopoulos has confirmed he has rejected a £16million move to Zenit St Petersburg.

Greece international declares his love for the Bundesliga club

Schalke defender Kyriakos Papadopoulos has confirmed he rejected a £16million move to Zenit St Petersburg. The 20-year-old is highly rated by coach Huub Stevens but the wealthy Russians sought to test the resolve of the Bundesliga club. An initial bid of £10.25m was tabled which was rebuffed before they returned with an improved offer of £16m. And despite admitting that he did give the move some thought, Papadopoulos has opted to remain in Germany. "As you can imagine, I had to give the move some thought," he told his official website. "The offer from Zenit St Petersburg was very lucrative but the fact that I am staying at Schalke says a lot. "I am going to remain a Schalke player because I enjoy playing for the club."