It’s easy to forget just how important a player Alexander Hleb was for Arsenal in his three years in north London.
From the day he arrived from Stuttgart in summer 2005 until the day he left for Barcelona in July 2008 the Belarusian international was one of Arsene Wenger’s most influential players in the Arsenal XI in the three seasons he spent at the club.
Mainly played as a right-sided midfielder, Hleb was the prime example of a versatile player. Able to play anywhere in the midfield, the former Stuttgart man found his success in north London for his willingness to play wherever the boss put him and putting in a good performance no matter where he was placed.
Hleb was an essential player in Arsenal’s 2005/06 Champions League runner-up squad that saw the Gunners go from the third game of their group to the final without conceding a goal and beating the likes of Real Madrid and Juventus along the way.
Although the midfielder was on the losing side for two finals and a Community Shield game during his time in north London, Hleb’s three years at the club is remembered fondly by fans. In the three seasons spent at Arsenal, the Belarusian made 130 appearances for the club, scoring 10 goals and assisting 13.
The great shame about Hleb’s Arsenal career, though, is how quickly it ended. Sold to Barcelona for a reported £17 million in the summer of 2008, the midfielder’s move to the Catalan giants is something he has admitted was a mistake in his career.
Upon moving to Barcelona Hleb was only a squad player for Pep Guardiola’s squad, only playing 36 games in four years in Spain that saw the midfielder go out loan three times to the likes of Stuttgart, Birmingham City and Wolfsburg before moving back to his home country in 2012 when his contract was terminated at Barca.
Still playing to this day with BATE Borisov, his third spell with the Belarusian giants, Hleb returned to play against Arsenal in the Europa League Round of 32 where the two teams were drawn against each other.
At 37, Hleb has made no plans to retire just yet from professional football, and for Arsenal fans everywhere, the day the midfielder announces his exit from the game will be a sad one for sure.
