Former Arsenal midfielder Alexander Hleb has revealed he cried when he spoke to Arsene Wenger before departing the club for Barcelona.
The 39-year-old Belarusian regrets leaving for the Nou Camp in 2008 and 'doesn't understand' why he left the Gunners.
Hleb made 130 appearances for the north London club between 2005-08 and was a fan favourite during his time there.
He arrived from German side Stuttgart and was a key player for the Gunners, scoring 10 goals and notching 18 assists during his time at Arsenal.
Hleb joined Barcelona for a fee of £13.5million in the summer of 2008, but only made 19 appearances for the club.
He did significantly add to his trophy collection, winning the Champions League, LaLiga and Copa del Rey in his first season, but Hleb still questions whether leaving the north London club was ultimately the right decision.
He told Arsenal's In In Lockdown podcast: 'I don't understand. To this day I still don't understand what happened or why I made the decision.
'Of course, Barcelona in that moment was the best team in the world but I was really happy at Arsenal at the time.
'The fantastic championship, the Premier League, everything. Why I left, I don't understand.
'Barca, of course, were the best team at the time and everybody wants something (new) to try but really I was 100 per cent happy at Arsenal.
'I cried when I talked to Arsene (Wenger). We talked in the holiday before I left and he told me he wanted to keep me and I was important.
'I cried. I didn't know what to do in that moment.'
luomrty
121
Barcelona has the backing of referees. They always help Barcelona to win. Take for instance the red card to Arsenal goalkeeper during the final with Barcelona. Now three Juve goals against Barcelona were disallowed and Juve list 0-2 to Barcelona