Former Arsenal star Alexander Hleb says it was a mistake to leave the club for Barcelona.
Hleb joined the Gunners from Stuttgart in 2005 and spent three seasons in north London, making 130 appearances and reaching the Champions League final with the club.
The former attacking midfielder was not able to secure a regular spot in Barca’s starting XI as he featured just 36 times for the Spanish giants and was loaned out to Stuttgart, Birmingham and Wolfsburg before his contract was terminated by mutual consent.
Although the Camp Nou outfit won the Champions League, La Liga and the Copa del Rey in his first season at the club, he admits it was not worth leaving Arsenal, where he felt truly happy.
“Many years later and I still think about it,” Hleb said on Arsenal’s In Lockdown podcast. “I don’t understand. To this day I still don’t understand what happened or why I made the decision.
“Of course, Barcelona in that moment was the best team in the world but I was really happy at Arsenal at the time. I had friends, I enjoyed the coach, I was playing for one of the best teams, the fans, the stadium, everything! The fantastic championship, the Premier League, everything!
“Why I left, I don’t understand. Barca, of course, were the best team at the time and everybody wants something to try but really I was 100 per cent happy at Arsenal.
Goal