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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Josh O'Brien

Every Arsenal to Barcelona transfer ranked as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang seals switch

Arsenal have seen their ninth player since 2000 to leave the club in favour of a new challenge presented to them by La Liga titans Barcelona after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has joined on a free.

There was once a time under Arsene Wenger when Arsenal were viewed by some as Barcelona's less-successful English cousins, adopting a similar footballing philosophy without anywhere near as much silverware as their Catalonian counterparts.

The sides would often meet in Champions League fixtures that saw the two playing styles ensure the fixture was one for the passing purists.

However, ask any Arsenal fan what they think of Barcelona and the response may be angrier than expected due to the fact the Blaugrana have purchased so many Gunners stars down the years.

HAVE YOUR SAY! How will Aubameyang fare at Barcelona? Comment below

Barcelona’s new signing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang poses for the media and undergoes his medical (@FCBarcelona/Twitter)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the ninth player to move from Arsenal to Barcelona (@FCBarcelona/Twitter)

It is hard to predict how Aubameyang will fare given the 32-year-old can be so prolific at times and so profligate at others.

He has made a nice living finding the back of the net everywhere he has played and both he and the Barca faithful will hope that trend continues.

In the wake of Aubameyang's switch, Mirror Football has ranked the eighth previous former Arsenal stars who were enticed by the bright lights of Barcelona from worst to best.

8 - Aleksandr Hleb

Aleksander Hleb spent the majority of his time in Barcelona on the bench ((Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images))

The signing of Hleb from Arsenal to Barcelona came as somewhat of a surprise given he was by no means the biggest hitter in that Gunners side.

The Belarus international enjoyed a stellar 2007/08 season with Arsenal but few could have predicted it would propel him to the heights of Barcelona.

However, the Catalans were determined to bring him in and it went about as poorly as many tipped it would with Hleb spending the bulk of his time on the bench.

Making just 19 appearances in four years, Hleb spent the bulk of his time on the books of Barcelona on loan elsewhere, with spells at VfB Stuttgart, Birmingham City and VfL Wolfsburg.

His career took a downward turn post-Arsenal and the tricky midfielder failed to turn things around.

7 - Thomas Vermaelen

Thomas Vermaelen made less than 50 appearances for Barcelona in five years at the club ((Photo by Quality Sport Images/Getty Images))

The Belgium international started at Arsenal in scintillating fashion but failed to recapture that form in a Barcelona shirt or come anywhere close.

Vermaelen was not only a solid stalwart at the back for the Gunners but could also pop up with a vital goal or two when the going got tough, his last-gasp winner at home to Newcastle springs to mind.

Following the departure of Robin van Persie in 2012, Vermaelen was promoted to the status of club captain but lost his place in the starting eleven that same season after persistent injuries.

Despite being in and out of the Arsenal side for two years, Barcelona saw fit to part ways with £15m for the Belgian's services in 2014.

After five years as a Barcelona player, one of which was spent on loan at Roma, Vermaelen made less than 50 appearances before leaving the club on a permanent basis for Japanese outfit Vissel Kobe.

6 - Alex Song

Alex Song claimed he did not care about the fact he was not getting played at Barcelona ((Photo by Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty Images))

Alex Song's Barcelona career is perhaps best summed up in his own words.

Speaking to Toronto Raptor's Pascal Siakam on Instagram, Song admitted: "When Barcelona offered me a contract, and I saw how much I would earn, I didn't think twice. I felt my wife and children should have comfortable lives once my career is over.

"I met Barca's sporting director, and he told me I would not get to play many games. But I didn't give a f*** - I knew that now I would become a millionaire.

"I'll always say that a 20-year-old who drives a Ferrari is a poor man, as at that age he's not yet achieved anything.

"But a man of 50 who drives a Bentley is a man to be respected."

Song spent two of his four years as a Barcelona player back on loan in the Premier League with West Ham United, failing to justify the £15m he cost the Catalans.

5 - Emmanuel Petit

Emmanuel Petit spent one season at Barcelona (Shaun Botterill /Allsport)

The French World Cup winner joined Barcelona from Arsenal as part of a double transfer that saw Marc Overmars make the same trip, but Petit fared worse than his former Gunners teammate in Catalonia.

Fresh off of his iconic midfield partnership with Patrick Vieira, Petit was just another player at the Camp Nou and spent a single season as a Barcelona player before coming back to London though this time he joined Chelsea.

Years after his move, Petit claimed in his autobiography that the Barcelona manager of the time of his switch, Lorenzo Serra Ferrer, did not know what position the Frenchman played.

He scored a single goal in Barca colours during his one season with the club before he left, complaining about everything from the manager to the tactics as he went.

4 - Marc Overmars

Marc Overmars was forced to retire at Barcelona ((Photo by GERRY PENNY/AFP via Getty Images))

Barcelona paid £25m for Overmars in 2000 which in turn made him the most expensive Dutch player in football history at the time.

The Dutchman will forever hold a special place in the hearts of the Arsenal faithful and was even once voted the 12th greatest Gunners player of all time.

He is not thought of quite as fondly at the Camp Nou, though that does not suggest he made an enemy of the Barcelona faithful, simply that his time at the club was plagued with injuries.

Overmars was forced to retire after just three years at Barcelona aged just 31 after a persistent knee injury scuppered his entire career.

3 - Giovanni van Bronckhorst

Van Bronckhorst was part of an Arsenal side that memorably won the Premier League in 2002, sealing the victory at the home of fierce rivals Manchester United.

A cruciate knee ligament injury drastically scuppered much of his time in north London but, as they did with Vermaelen years later, Barcelona's hierarchy ignored the defender's questionable injury record.

The Dutchman undeniably fared better than the Belgian as he helped Barcelona win two La Liga titles as well as the 2006 Champions League.

Van Bronckhorst was the only Barcelona player to feature in every minute of that glorious European run which ended with glory against the Gunners of all people on a rain-sodden night in Paris.

2 - Cesc Fabregas

Cesc Fabregas spent eight years at Arsenal before re-joining Barcelona ((Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images))

Fabregas was lured from the Barcelona academy as a teenager to become the youngest goal-scorer in Arsenal history aged just 16 years, six months and 28 days.

He lit up both Highbury and the Emirates during his eight years at the club, but at the time of his departure, he did tarnish his legacy in the eyes of the Arsenal faithful.

Having been entrusted with the armband at just 21 years of age, Arsenal fans were particularly devoted to Fabregas, which made the image of him joking around with Barca players while on international duty and having the Barcelona home shirt forced over his head all the more uncomfortable.

The summer of 2011 saw Barcelona finally get a player they regularly claimed had 'Barca DNA' after they forked out €29m with a further €5m in add-ons.

His time in Catalonia saw him win one La Liga title as well as one Copa del Rey crown alongside both the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.

1 - Thierry Henry

Thierry Henry finished his first season at Barcelona as top scorer ((Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images))

Few player exits broke Arsenal hearts quite like this one, the club's record goal-scorer upping sticks to the Camp Nou in 2007 after eight illustrious years in the red and white shirt.

Henry would play a vital part in the iconic Barcelona treble-winning side of 2009 under a young Pep Guardiola to ensure he is also loved by Barca fans.

The Frenchman was clearly smitten by Barcelona long before he actually joined, as he explained "I always said that if I ever left Arsenal it would be to play for Barcelona."

Given the World Cup winner was deployed on the left wing a lot more in Spain, he didn't quite recreate the kind of ludicrous goal-scoring achievements he managed in north London.

With that being said, his debut season at the club saw him finish top of the pile in the scoring charts with 19 goals in addition to nine league assists.

It is for that reason Henry is comfortably the best player to ever ply his trade for both Arsenal and Barcelona.

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