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Recently, Barcelona signed Alex Song from Arsenal for £15 million. Here is a look at all the Arsenal players who were transferred to Barcelona.
1.) Marc Overmars
Overmars was the first player to be transferred from Arsenal to Barcelona. Wenger signed him in 1997 for £5.5 million from AFC Ajax. His finest season was Arsenal’s 1997-98 double campaign & he kept his form for the following two seasons running though Arsenal went without a trophy. He scored many vital goals, helping Arsenal to clinch the double.
He joined Barcelona in summer of 2000 for £25 million making him most expensive Dutch player of all time. Transfer of Overmars along with Emmanuel Petit was a major setback for the Arsenal fans.
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2.) Emmanuel Petit
He was the captain of the AS Monaco side winning the Ligue 1 title in 1996-97. Despite the interest from Scottish giants Rangers, Wenger captured Petit in June 1997, for an estimated fee of £2.5 million. At Arsenal, Petit & his fellow countryman Viera formed a formidable partnership together and dominated the midfield. Wenger played Petit as defensive midfielder.
In the summer of 2000, Petit moved to Barcelona with his fellow club mate Marc Overmars to the Catalan giants Barcelona for £7 million. At Barcelona, he linked up with Dutch team-mates Patrick Kluivert, Frank & Ronald de Boer, Winston Bogarde. He never touched the heights he touched at the Highbury, spending most of the time on sidelines.
3.) Giovanni van Bronckhorst
Wenger bought Gio to replace the void left by Petit. Arsenal paid £8.5 million to bring him to Highbury from Rangers. He had a cultured left foot, an eye for goal, and provided the creativity that was lacking from Gunner’s play over the last few seasons. After joining, in few months time, he suffered a cruciate ligament injury, keeping him on the sidelines. When he returned, there was tough competition for the spot in midfield & he was way behind Vieira, Edu and Gilberto Silva in the pecking order. He made just 22 Premiership starts for Arsenal.
In the beginning of 2003-04 season, he joined Barcelona on a season-long loan with the aim for a permanent move. In May 2004, he completed his permanent switch to Barcelona after signing a three-year deal for fee of € 2 million.
4.) Thierry Henry
Thierry Henry was of course, and still is, a Gunner’s legend. He joined Arsenal from Juventus on 3 August 1999 to for a fee of £11 million & was reunited with his former manager Arsene Wenger. During his time, he formed a lethal partnership with Bergkamp up front. He was a winger turned striker by Wenger. Within a few years, he was regarded as one of the best strikers in the world. His curling shots, back heels & trickeries were just impossible to beat. Henry suffered foot, back, stomach & groin injuries in his last season at Arsenal & a sciatic nerve proved to be a long-standing problem that sidelined him for rest of the 2006-07 season.
On 25th June 2007, Henry was transferred to Barcelona for €24 million. He signed a four-year deal. He left Arsenal as the club’s leading all-time league goal-scorer with 174 goals.
5.) Alexander Hleb
In June 2005, Hleb joined Arsenal from VfB Stuttgart for €15 million, on a four-year contract. Wenger played him in multiple midfield positions, but he was mostly preferred on the right wing. On his return from injury, the crafty winger showed signs of real quality. He shown flashes of why clubs are prepared to pay so much money for him but never shown the level of radiance that one might reasonably expect for a player of his stature.
On 16th July 2008, he completed his transfer to Catalonia for fee of €15 million plus add-ons of €2 million if they won the La Liga in 2008–09/2009–10 which they did in 2008–09, bringing his total fee to €17 million. He signed a four-year contract, with a buy-out clause of €90 million.
6.) Cesc Fàbregas
Fàbregas joined Arsenal as a 16 year old teenager in September 2003. In coming seasons, he blossomed under Arsene Wenger & was handed captaincy in the season 2008-09. Since joining, he matured into one of Europe’s finest players young midfielders & was highly coveted in Spain.
His career at north London was tragically cut short by the Catalans. A move to his childhood club was imminent. On 15th August, 2011, Barcelona signed Fàbregas for an initial fee of €29 million with a further €5 million in variables.
7.) Alex Song
Alex Song was arguably the second best performer for Arsenal last season behind van Persie. Song joined Arsenal from Bastia for a fee of £1 million. It took him just a couple of seasons to prove why Wenger had opted to bring him to Arsenal. Last season, he filled the void left by the departures of Fàbregas & Nasri, becoming Arsenal’s new focal point. His strong decision making, pinpoint passing, tough tackling & whipping interceptions made him one of the best midfielders in Europe.
He left Arsenal for Barcelona on 20th August, 2012. He signed a five-year contract for an estimated fee of £15 million with a buy-out clause of €80 million.
