Krylya Sovetov midfielder Alexander Hleb says his one big regret in football is leaving Barcelona.
The Belarusian playmaker joined the Spaniards from Arsenal for 15 million euros in July 2008, but was used sparingly by Frank Rijkaard and his successor Pep Guardiola before being loaned out for the rest of his four-year contract.
"I shouldn't have left Barcelona," Hleb told RIA Novosti in a recent interview. "Now I would do everything differently. I should have fought to the end for a place in the Barca lineup."
Hleb, 30, said he let his emotions get the better of him when Guardiola would call him into the squad only to leave him on the bench. It led to conflict that proved too deep to keep him at the club.
"I was offended like a little kid. And I showed it: Sometimes I would run less in training, sometimes I would pose. The coach would tell me to do one thing, and I'd do something else in defiance. It was like kindergarten, I find it ridiculous now."
"Now I understand that it was my fault, because I provoked the conflict deliberately, by my own stupidity. I played every other game, I wanted to play more. After Arsenal, my ambitions were sky-high, and I always asked why I was being left on the bench after playing well."
Hleb said he failed to understand the company he was in.
"I didn't completely comprehend that this was the world's best club. I wanted to be a permanent part of the side. [Lionel] Messi is one thing, but what about everyone else? These were the thoughts that ruined me."
Hleb said French striker Thierry Henry's attempts to talk him into a more professional approach worked until he was left out of the side again, and the mind games started over.
In the end, Hleb made just 19 appearances for Barcelona over those four years, most of which were spent on loan at Stuttgart, Birmingham City and Wolfsburg.
Hleb reiterated criticism of the physical English game, saying "you can get little pleasure out of it."
"At Birmingham, the team played the long-ball game, practically bypassing midfield. To get into the game you had to play up front or linger at the back with the defenders to get hold of the ball, which more often than not flew right past me."
Hleb, who played 19 times for the Blues in the 2010-11 season, described then-Birmingham boss Alex McLeish as "not a bad bloke" but criticized his tactical preparation.
"The day before a game he would come onto the pitch and show us what to do: 'You stand here, the goalkeeper will give you the ball here, kick it as far as you can and don't pass to anyone nearby. And we all run.'"
Hleb joined the Samara-based side Krylya Sovetov in the winter transfer window looking to revive a career beset by injuries.
He has played 55 times for the Belarus national side, scoring six goals, and has captained the team.
