Arsenal news: Arsene Wenger confirms he tried to sign Gareth Barry before Man City move

And Gunners boss Arsene Wenger has revealed that he wanted to sign the holding midfielder back in 2009 as a replacement for Patrick Vieira.

At the time, the now-36-year-old was playing for an Aston Villa side who finished sixth in the top flight for three consecutive seasons from 2007 onwards.

But Arsenal had their bid for the left-footer blown out of the water by free-spending Manchester City.

“We were interested in him [Barry], yes, when he moved from Villa to City,” Wenger said. 

“But at the time City was the big investor, and so that financial potential was superior to ours at the time.”

Barry’s game peaked between around 2008 and 2012, becoming an England regular under Fabio Capello and also attracting the interest of Liverpool. 

After leaving City, Barry spent four seasons at Everton before moving to West Brom, where he is poised to make his 633rd appearance.

“I believe that it’s an outstanding achievement,” Wenger continued. 

“He’s a player who is intelligent, determined, strong in the challenge, has good technical quality and I personally always rated him highly.

“I think just he was a bit unlucky, because it was in the period of Lampard and Gerrard, and he maybe did not get the number of caps he deserved for England. 

"But it’s an exceptional achievement, what he’s doing.”