Hleb at Underhill Stadium, 2005 |
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Aliaksandr Paulavich Hleb | ||
| Date of birth | 1 May 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Minsk, Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1] | ||
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder / Winger | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Barcelona | ||
| Number | TBA | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1997–1998 | Dinamo-Juni Minsk | ||
| 1998–1999 | BATE Borisov | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1999–2000 | BATE Borisov | 10 | (4) |
| 2000–2001 | VfB Stuttgart II | 17 | (1) |
| 2000–2005 | VfB Stuttgart | 137 | (13) |
| 2005–2008 | Arsenal | 89 | (7) |
| 2008– | Barcelona | 19 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | → VfB Stuttgart (loan) | 27 | (0) |
| 2010–2011 | → Birmingham City (loan) | 19 | (1) |
| 2011–2012 | → VfL Wolfsburg (loan) | 4 | (1) |
| 2012– | Barcelona | 0 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2001– | Belarus | 55 | (6) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 14:51, 14 December 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Aliaksandr Paulavich Gleb (Belarusian: Аляксандр Паўлавіч Глеб, pronounced [alʲaˈksandar ɣlʲeb]; Russian: Александр Павлович Глеб; born 1 May 1981) commonly referred to in English as Alexander Hleb,[2] is a Belarusian footballer who currently plays for Spanish club FC Barcelona.
His natural and preferred position is attacking midfielder or 'in the hole' behind the strikers, but he is often deployed on the wing.
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Hleb grew up in Minsk. His mother was a builder, while his father drove petrol tankers. His father had volunteered to help knock down uninhabitable houses in Ukraine as the result of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Hleb believes this exposure to radiation caused his father's ill health. Before getting involved with football, Hleb was a keen swimmer and gymnast.[3] His younger brother Vyacheslav is also a footballer.
Hleb developed playing football on the concrete pitches of Dinamo Minsk school. At the age of 17, he signed for BATE Borisov, a Belarusian Premier League team from Borisov. The next season, they won the Championship.
Spotted by scouts, Alexander and his younger brother Vyacheslav were signed in 2000 by German Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart for approximately €150,000.[4] He made his Bundesliga debut on 5 September 2000 in an away match at Kaiserslautern, coming on as a substitute for the last 20 minutes.[5] Despite only making six league appearances in his first season with Stuttgart, Hleb became a regular at the club in his second season there and went on to establish himself as one of the most important players of the side.
In 2002–03, Stuttgart finished as runners-up in the Bundesliga and enjoyed a Champions League victory over Manchester United and Hleb had become established as the team's playmaker. However, after team manager Felix Magath left to join Bayern Munich in the summer of 2004, Stuttgart were not as successful under new coach Matthias Sammer, having finished the 2004–05 season in fifth place.[6] Nevertheless, Hleb was on top of the assist chart in his last season in the Bundesliga.
It is widely considered that Hleb's mentor at Stuttgart was Krassimir Balakov, the Bulgarian playmaker and fans' favourite. Balakov once said that Hleb was as talented as Diego Maradona.
In June 2005, Hleb joined English side Arsenal for a sum which may reach €15 million, on a four-year contract.[7] Arsène Wenger used Hleb at many different midfield positions, but he mainly played on the right wing for Arsenal. His competitive debut was made in August 2005, away to Chelsea. Soon after, Hleb sustained a knee injury while on international duty with Belarus and was out for several months, returning to the first team squad in December, and played 60 minutes in Arsenal's final UEFA Champions League group stage match against AFC Ajax on 7 December. By January 2006, Hleb had established himself as a first choice player and scored his first goal for Arsenal in a 7–0 win over Middlesbrough. In May Hleb became the first ever Belarusian footballer to play in the Champions League Final. He ended the season with 40 appearances and three goals.
Despite a hamstring injury, Hleb made 48 appearances in the 2006–07 season and scored three goals. In 2007–08, he was moved from the right wing and played behind Robin van Persie as a withdrawn striker. When strikers Emmanuel Adebayor and Eduardo recovered from injuries Arsène Wenger reverted to a 4–4–2 formation and Hleb returned to playing on the wing. His season was cut short after he was banned for three games by the FA after he was charged with violent conduct in an incident with Graeme Murty of Reading during their 2–0 win. Hleb admitted his offence, ending his season.
On 16 July 2008, a medical was held for the player at FC Barcelona, with his transfer completed later that day for a fee of €15 million plus an additional €2 million if Barcelona won the La Liga title in 2008–09 or 2009–10 (which they did in 2008–09, bringing his total fee to €17 million). Hleb signed a four-year contract, with a buy-out clause of €90 million.[8]
In March 2009, after featuring irregularly for the team — starting only five games in La Liga — he admitted that he would readily accept an offer from German Bundesliga team Bayern Munich, if such an opportunity arose in the summer. He said, "I am right in the best years of my career and I do not want to spend those years on bench. Bayern Munich is a special club, their interest in me is a delightful honour. Bayern is among the best teams in the world."[9]
Hleb went on to win the 2008–09 Treble with Barcelona in his first season with the club. Hleb featured briefly in the Copa del Rey final. The next week, Barcelona went on to beat Manchester United 2–0 in the UEFA Champion's League final; Hleb, however, did not feature.
At the end of the season, he turned down the opportunity to join on loan eventual 2009–10 Treble winners Internazionale, and chose to join VfB Stuttgart.
In July 2009, Hleb returned to his former club VfB Stuttgart on a one-year loan.[10][11][12][13] Hleb played 55 minutes in the first game of the 2009–10 Bundesliga season, away to Wolfsburg, a match which Stuttgart lost 2–0. Then, after playing in Stuttgart's 4–2 victory over SC Freiburg, Hleb scored his first goal for Stuttgart, during a Champions League qualifier against FC Timişoara, in a 2–0 away win for the German side.
On 31 August 2010, Hleb returned to England by signing a season-long loan deal with Premier League club Birmingham City.[14] An ankle injury sustained on international duty delayed his debut until 18 September, when he played 83 minutes in a 3–1 defeat at West Bromwich Albion.[15][16] Three days later he opened the scoring as Birmingham beat MK Dons 3–1 in the League Cup.[17] Injury disrupted his season, forcing him to miss Birmingham's victory over Arsenal in the League Cup Final. Towards the end of the season he ruled out a return to the club once his loan expired, suggesting that their style of football was not to his taste, although he wanted to remain in the Premier League, ideally at Arsenal.[18][19]
On 31 August 2011, Hleb was loaned out to VfL Wolfsburg.[20] Again, injury disrupted his stay at Wolfsburg, and the club confirmed he would leave at the scheduled end of the loan on 31 December 2011.[21]
Hleb won over 30 caps for the Under-21 Belarus side. He made his full international debut as a substitute in a 1–0 defeat against Wales in 2001. He scored on his second international start in a 5–2 victory over Hungary in April 2002. In November 2006, former Belarusian captain Sergei Gurenko launched a vicious criticism on Hleb for not working hard in national team settings. However, Hleb rejected any suggestion that he was a prima donna.[22] In August 2007, new national team manager Bernd Stange made him a team captain despite the criticism. On 22 August, Hleb wore the captain's armband for the first time in a 2–1 win against Israel.
Hleb was called "Zauberlehrling" or "Sorcerer's Apprentice" for his silky skills and dazzling tricks in Germany when he played in the Bundesliga.[23]
While playing for Arsenal, Hleb lived in Hampstead, North London.[24] In 2003, he was involved in a car crash in Minsk. A passenger in the other car later died.[25] His brother Vyacheslav is also a footballer who plays for German team FSV Frankfurt, as well as the national team.
Hleb was married to Anastasia Kosenkova, an ex-singer of the Belarusian pop group 'Topless'. Their wedding took place the summer of 2008.[26]
| Club performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Belarus | League | Belarusian Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1998 | Dinamo-Juni Minsk | First League | 11 | 1 | 11 | 1 | ||||||
| 1999 | BATE Borisov | Premier League | 13 | 1 | 13 | 1 | ||||||
| 2000 | 12 | 3 | 12 | 3 | ||||||||
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | DFB Ligapokal | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2000–01 | Stuttgart | Bundesliga | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2001–02 | 32 | 2 | 3 | 0 | - | - | 35 | 2 | ||||
| 2002–03 | 34 | 4 | 2 | 1 | - | 8 | 3 | 44 | 8 | |||
| 2003–04 | 31 | 5 | 3 | 0 | - | 8 | 0 | 42 | 5 | |||
| 2004–05 | 34 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | 8 | 0 | 45 | 4 | |||
| England | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2005–06 | Arsenal | Premier League | 25 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 39 | 3 |
| 2006–07 | 33 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 48 | 3 | ||
| 2007–08 | 31 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 42 | 4 | ||
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Copa de la Liga | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2008–09 | Barcelona | La Liga | 19 | 0 | 8 | 0 | - | 9 | 0 | 36 | 0 | |
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | DFB Ligapokal | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2009–10 | Stuttgart | Bundesliga | 27 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 8 | 1 | 36 | 1 | |
| England | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2010–11 | Birmingham City | Premier League | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | - | 20 | 2 | |
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | DFB Ligapokal | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2011–12 | VfL Wolfsburg | Bundesliga | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | |
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Copa de la Liga | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2011–12 | Barcelona | La Liga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Country | Belarus | 36 | 5 | 36 | 5 | |||||||
| Germany | 168 | 14 | 14 | 3 | - | 33 | 4 | 215 | 21 | |||
| England | 108 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 28 | 3 | 149 | 12 | ||
| Spain | 19 | 0 | 8 | 0 | - | 9 | 0 | 36 | 0 | |||
| Total | 331 | 27 | 28 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 70 | 7 | 436 | 38 | ||
| Belarus national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2001 | 1 | 0 |
| 2002 | 7 | 2 |
| 2003 | 3 | 0 |
| 2004 | 2 | 0 |
| 2005 | 8 | 1 |
| 2006 | 7 | 1 |
| 2007 | 10 | 0 |
| 2008 | 6 | 0 |
| 2009 | 5 | 1 |
| 2010 | 4 | 2 |
| Total | 53 | 7 |
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 April 2002 | Stadion Oláh Gábor Út, Debrecen, Hungary | Hungary | 1 – 1 | 5–2 | Friendly |
| 2 | 19 May 2002 | Dynamo Stadium (Moscow) (1928), Russia | Russia | 2 – 0 | 2–0 | LG Cup |
| 3 | 9 February 2005 | Dyskobolia Stadium, Grodzisk Wielkopolski, Poland | Poland | 1 – 0 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 4 | 16 August 2006 | Dynama Stadium (Minsk), Belarus | Andorra | 1 – 0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 5 | 1 April 2009 | Almaty Central Stadium, Almaty, Kazakhstan | Kazakhstan | 1 – 1 | 5–1 | World Cup 2010 qualifier |
| 6 | 3 March 2010 | Antalya Atatürk Stadium, Antalya, Turkey | Armenia | 2 – 1 | 3–1 | Friendly |
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