Breaking down how Barca have wasted so much money on Arsenal players.
You’d think they’d have learnt by now, but Barcelona just keep going in for Arsenal players. Despite the success of Thierry Henry, and the semi success of Cesc Fabregas, the Catalan giants have wasted £163m over the years on bringing players over from north London. Below is how they managed to spend such crazy money on Gunners stars, only for them to turn out to be flops.
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Giovanni Van Bronkhorst
When: 2003
How much: £1m
It may be harsh to describe the Dutchman as a flop, having arrived on loan he was signed for just £1m the following season. He went on the help the club lift the La Liga title and the Champions League before brokering a deal to leave the club early in order to join his boyhood club Feyenoord at the end of his first campaign.
Emmanuel Petit
When: 2000
How much: £7m
Petit was one of the poster boys for Arsene Wenger’s transformation of Arsenal, having brought him in from Monaco he went on to be the perfect foil for Patrick Viera in what was a particularly tough midfield. Barcelona took a liking to him and sprang for his signature at the turn of the century.
However, it didn’t all work out at the Nou Camp as a series of niggling injuries limited his availability, and he would later concede that coach Llorenç Serra Ferrer didn’t know his best position as he frequently played him in the heart of the defence. Petit returned to England with Chelsea just a year later.
Alex Song
When: 2012
How much: £15m
The Cameroonian turned himself into a lynchpin at the Emirates, and bossed the club’s midfield in a way that nobody has managed since. Barca came knocking in 2012 and paid £15m for the privilege. Like Petit, though, he struggled to become a regular fixture at the Nou Camp thanks to the club’s already crowded midfield, and managed to make just 65 appearances in all competitions during his two-year stint in Spain. Still technically on the books, he joined West Ham on a season long loan in the summer.
Aleksander Hleb
When: 2008
How much: £8m
Hleb electrified the Arsenal midfield with his incredible dribbling and vision (and low socks), but despite becoming the first and only Belorussian to play for Barca he achieved little else during his time there. He was sent on loan to Germany twice and Birmingham, hilariously, but his career never quite recovered upon his release and has spent the remaining years of his career touring eastern Europe and Turkey.
Marc Overmars
When: 2000
How much: £25m
Nobody can blame Barcelona in springing for the flying Dutchman. His performances in London were some of the finest that the Premier League has ever seen and he helped establish Arsenal as a dominant force in the top flight.
However, despite a strong start in Spain, those old knee and hamstring problems flared up again and diminished his ability considerably, so much so that he was forced to retire in 2004 at the age of 31. He made a short comeback in 2008, though, with Go Ahead Eagles in his homeland.
Thomas Vermaelen
When: 2014
How much: £15m
With Carles Puyol retired and the Barca back line in disarray, they moved for the powerful Belgian in the hope that he would be able to help solve their problems. Despite being club captain, his final season saw him struggling to get into the side and he decided that it would be best for him to move on.
But news this week has suggested that the Belgian international will miss the rest of the season thanks to his hamstring injury, and rumours of a loan return to England with Man united and Arsenal now appear to be shelved. It’s fair to say that Barca just shouldn’t bother next time and look somewhere else.
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