Armenia star Pachajyan off to Sweden

GAIS Göteborg have signed Armenian Player of the Year Levon Pachajyan from FC Pyunik on a four-year contract. The 24-year-old midfielder scored ten times in 23 appearances as Pyunik secured a seventh straight league title in November and was ever-present for Armenia in 2007.

Pyunik departures
He becomes the fourth key player to leave Pyunik during the transfer window following the departures of Agvan Mkrtchyan, Aleksandr Tadevosyan and Robert Arzumanyan, joining a GAIS side sitting fourth from bottom in the Swedish Allsvenskan. Pachajyan arrived at Pyunik in 2003 and won the Armenian championship in each of his five seasons with the club. He admitted in December, however, that it was time to test himself abroad and after impressing on trial with GAIS he took the plunge.

Overseas dream
"Every Armenian player dreams of playing for a top European club and playing in a major league," said Pachajyan, who has been capped 18 times. "It is exactly the same for me. It is a massive honour to play for a big European club, but it is hard to earn a move to one. First you have to establish yourself in one of the more modest leagues."