5 superstars who wished they had not joined Barcelona

#3 Alexander Hleb

Hleb regretted leaving Arsenal

One of the worst transfers in Barcelona's history, Alexander Hleb joined the Catalans in 2008 as a highly rated attacking option. Hleb was a monumental player at Arsene Wenger's Arsenal of the mid-2000s. In 2006, he became the first Belarusian footballer to appear in a UCL final, which the Gunners eventually lost to his future employers.

At Barcelona, Hleb was utilized irregularly in several positions, making it impossible for the playmaker to settle. Pep Guardiola seemed to have given up on his latest recruitment mid-season, only giving him five La Liga starts by March 2009. Hleb openly admitted his desire to exit the club, stating,

I am right in the best years of my career and I do not want to spend those years on bench. Bayern Munich is a special club, their interest in me is a delightful honour. Bayern is among the best teams in the world."

#OTD 2008🗓️Alexander Hleb completes a £11.9m move to #FCBarcelona who put a £70m buy-out clause on the midfielder.🗨️"It's a dream. I love this (Barcelona) team" said Hleb2017🗨️“Arsenal was the best time in my career. I was absolutely 100% happy. I still ask myself why I left" pic.twitter.com/5KnwgKzcVl

— ⒷⓇⒾⒻⒻⒶ (@goonerbeau) July 16, 2021

His stock plummeted during his solitary season with Barcelona. The Belarusian midfielder was sent out on three different loan spells to relatively low-pedigree teams. Hleb became a journeyman after his contract was terminated in 2012, via mutual consent. In 2019, at the ripe old age of 38, Hleb embraced retirement having last played for Isloch Minsk Raion in his hometown.

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#2 Ricardo Quaresma

Quaresma enjoyed some success in the latter stages of his career

Once considered to be a brighter prospect than Cristiano Ronaldo, Ricardo Quaresma had the world at his feet in 2003. The Portuguese wunderkind had a hoard of suitors, waiting in line to get his signature. Exuding the potential of a future superstar, Quaresma chose a €6.35m to move to Barcelona as his first step into stardom.

However, his switch to Catalonia ended up derailing his career beyond recovery. The talented youngster struggled to adapt to life in Barcelona, failing to show the commitment needed to succeed at the top-most level. What was supposed to be his breakout move, turned into a nightmare real fast as Quaresma could only muster three goal involvements in 28 appearances for the Spanish giants.

—Sporting—Barcelona—Porto—Inter Milan—Chelsea—Besiktas—Al-Ahli—Porto—Besiktas—KasimpasaRicardo Quaresma returns to Portugal with Vitoria for his next stop 💪 pic.twitter.com/J0GPclsamI

— B/R Football (@brfootball) September 7, 2020

Barcelona decided to cut their losses the next year, shafting Quaresma in exchange for €6m from Porto. The erratic forward proved to be an astronomical failure at all of his subsequent clubs, including Inter and Chelsea. He did experience a brief renaissance period with Besiktas which saw him getting recalled to the national squad for the 2018 World Cup. He was also part of the squad that lifted the UEFA Euro Championship trophy in 2016. Quaresma is currently slugging it out in his native country with mid-table regulars Vitória Guimarães.

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#1 Philippe Coutinho

Coutinho has a last chance to save his failing career

The pick of the bunch, of course, it has to be Philippe Coutinho in the first place. The dribbling maestro has become a shadow of his true self, ever since his €135m transfer to Barcelona. Constant injuries and the club's failure to properly incorporate him into the first team has left Coutinho on the fringes of a dismal Barcelona team.

Having forced his move to Spain, the 29-year-old playmaker has experienced a horrendous run of form lately. Ironically, his best performances since 2018 came during his season-long loan at Bayern Munich. He infamously scored twice and assisted once in an 8-2 humiliation of his current employers in a treble-winning season with Bayern. When your best moments, whilst being contracted to a club, come against them, you know it has been an awful deal.

Philippe Coutinho makes emotional admission about tough time at Barcelonahttps://t.co/dRepKEEvrW pic.twitter.com/xlIIQ6PB5q

— Mirror Football (@MirrorFootball) August 29, 2021

Coutinho did seem to be picking up some kind of form towards the start of the 2020-21 season before a long-term injury sidelined him for the rest of the term. With Lionel Messi gone, the Brazilian midfielder has one last chance to rescue his tumbling reputation by being the creator that Barcelona need. Nevertheless, considering his gargantuan price tag, Coutinho is and probably will remain the worst transfer in the club's history.

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