Alexander Hleb's Departure From Arsenal: A Blessing In Disguise?

Tuesday's reports of a feud between Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger and The Gunners' Belarus international Alexander Hleb has seemed to all but confirmed the player's departure from the North London club.

The speculation that has dragged on quietly alongside the "Ronaldo to Real" stories should soon come to an end, and while the attacking midfielder has enjoyed his best season in a rejuvenated Arsenal side, many feel that the club will be able to cope with his loss.

Like many of Wenger’s signings, Alexander Hleb came to Arsenal as a relative unknown after his move from German side VfB Stuttgart. This was where the player had built a reputation following impressive performances as an attacking midfield play-maker that played just behind the two strikers. Wenger never had this role in mind for Hleb and the player would go on to occupy a place on the right side of midfield, and to me, he has never looked comfortable in this position.

There is no doubting that Wenger has hoped that Hleb could adapt to this role, after all, you only have to look at Arsenal's recent history to see that players such as Robert Pires and Fredrik Ljungberg, who also had not been considered as out and out wingers, thrived in Arsenal’s midfield. At the time of Hleb's move, the combination of Highbury’s narrow pitch and Arsenal's attacking full backs allowed the wingers to enjoy a near free role as two attacking midfielders could often get beyond the strikers and score crucial goals for the team. Pires and Ljungberg did this consistently.

Unfortunately Alexander Hleb has never looked capable of this. The frantic pace of the Premier League and its physical nature often made the midfielder seem like a bystander as seasons unfolded. Hleb looked like a misfit with the fans and media alike understandably questioning whether the player would become the natural replacement for the ageing Pires and injury prone Ljungberg.

However, the saving grace for Hleb came in the form of Champions League football, the European game, which is a lot less physical and played at a slower tempo than the domestic one. It looked as if it came as a welcome break for Hleb and seemed to highlight his best attributes.

This quick footed, intelligent midfielder with an eye for a defence splitting pass, thrived when given time and space on the ball, and his ability to keep the ball and maintain possession fitted well with the patient style of football that Arsenal had adopted for the Champions League.

Accompanied by the fact that Wenger would decide to field a 4-5-1 formation in European competition, this allowed the likes of Alexander Hleb and Cesc Fabregas the freedom to roam in midfield. With their ability to supply the talismanic figure of Thierry Henry with goal scoring opportunities, it shouldn’t have been a surprise when Arsenal reached the Champions League final in his first season, only to be denied by Barcelona.

In Arsenal’s run to the final, Hleb’s performances were exceptional in contrast to those in the Premier League, and the player showed glimpses of quality that would begin to justify his hefty transfer fee, a reported £11.2 million.

Despite this, neither Arsenal or Hleb managed to build on this progression in 2006/07, which resulted in a largely forgettable season where the club struggled to make an impact domestically and build on their runners-up position in that season's Champions League competition.

However, the start of the 2007-08 season would see Hleb start in a slightly different role, playing just behind Robin Van Persie in the season opener at home to Fulham. This was the first time that Arsenal fans would see the best of Hleb in the Premier League, with the midfielder becoming more involved in the game with his clever passing and probing runs at the opposition defence, causing problems from the start.

With the scores locked at 1-1, Arsenal fans feared that the difficulties they often encountered when trying to break teams down at home would continue into the new season. With minutes remaining this changed, Alexander Hleb scored a late winner that both manager and media alike claimed was an early and important turning point in the fortunes of the club. It was also a turning point in Hleb’s Arsenal career.

Hleb continued to play in this role, and played well in doing so. This was going to change and perhaps it was disappointing for him when Wenger reverted back to the regular 4-4-2 when Emmanuel Adebayor, who had been struggling with early season fitness, came back into the team and formed what looked to be a deadly partnership up front with Van Persie. Hleb found himself playing out wide again, but something was different this time.

It could’ve been down to finally settling into the Premier League’s style of play, while many believed that a lot of the players had taken on more responsibility following Thierry Henry’s departure. In the case of Alexander Hleb it seemed to be that his early season form had given him the confidence that he always seemed to lack in his early years at Arsenal.

Hleb would be called on again to play in what seemed to be his favoured role in the hole, preferred over Nicklas Bendtner and Theo Walcott as the persistent injury problems of Robin Van Persie and the unfortunate Eduardo incident left Arsenal often looking lightweight up front.

Arguably his best game in an Arsenal shirt came at Old Trafford in April. The match against Manchester United was a must win for The Gunners if they were to have any chance of catching the reigning champions. The first half was lit up by Hleb whose performance, again in his favoured role, was eye-catching and the midfielder was the best player on the pitch by far.

The midfielder showed his best attributes, being solid in possession, running at the defence and causing problems and creating chances—notably for Adebayor who wasted them. Hleb came off with an injury in the second half and although Arsenal went on to lose the match, Hleb’s performance came in for a lot of praise.

At the end of the season Hleb was looked at as one of the many positives in a campaign that saw Arsenal finish just four points behind Manchester United, so it may disappoint Arsenal fans as his future now seems to lie away from the club.

Despite this, if the right man is brought in, the loss can be muted in a similar way to how the departure of Marc Overmars soon looked like a great piece of business with Robert Pires signing for a fraction of the fee. It seems like Wenger has looked to Marseille again with Samir Nasri, signed this week, looking like the man to fill the void left by Hleb.

The problem with Hleb is that he doesn’t score enough goals and doesn’t even get into goal scoring positions nearly as much as he should. Screams of “SHOOT!” often ring around the Emirates stadium when the player is in and around the box, yet more often than not he will look for the pass, which can often lead to positive opportunities breaking down.

While you can argue that he lays more assists on for the team, the goal scoring midfielder is crucial for any team in the modern game. You only have to look at the goals that Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Cristiano Ronaldo score from midfield to see why Arsenal's competitors have had the edge over the past few seasons.

While Pires and Ljungberg used to hit double figures every season, Hleb has never managed this, nor Tomas Rosicky to be fair. Hleb’s record of just 11 goals in 129 appearances highlights the current problems with Arsenal’s midfielders, who surely have to chip in with more goals if the club are going to compete for silverware.

While it seems like I am singling out Hleb as the cause of this problem, I don’t mean to do so. However, I do believe that the Arsenal wingers need to score more goals next season. Alexander Hleb never looked like doing so, but maybe Samir Nasri or another Wenger signing will, meaning that the inevitable departure of the Belarus international may prove to be a blessing in disguise.