Alex Song has admitted that he was not good at saving money during his time in Arsenal and that he moved to Barcelona for financial reasons.
Song won the La Liga with Barcelona and was a regular starter for Arsenal under the reign of Arsene Wenger.
After starting with French club Bastia, Song broke into the first team at 16 before being sold to Arsenal for Ksh155 million (£1 million) in the summer of 2006.
After a few seasons as a fringe player and a loan spell at Charlton, he enjoyed a breakthrough campaign aged 21 in 2008-09, playing 48 games in all competitions for Arsenal.
He became especially important to Arsenal in 2011 following the sale of Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona, with Wenger entrusting Song with more creative responsibilities.
He was rewarded for his show of faith, as the Cameroonian provided 11 Premier League assists with the Gunners finishing third.
In the summer of 2012, at the age of 24, it appeared Song was perfectly poised to become an Arsenal club legend – until he agreed to follow in Fabregas' footsteps by making a £15m ($20.6m) move to Barcelona.
Song played 65 games across two years in Spain, and also won La Liga in 2013. Song had earlier admitted that his move to Barcelona was motivated by money rather than game time.
"I was at Arsenal for eight years but only began to earn a good living in the last four. That was because my salary went up a lot but also because I came to realise what a waste I was.
"During my entire time at Arsenal, I couldn't even save £100,000 ($140,000), while people thought I must be a millionaire.
"When Barcelona offered me a contract, and I saw how much I would earn, I didn't think twice. I felt my wife and children should have comfortable lives once my career is over.
"I met Barca's sporting director, and he told me I would not get to play many games, but I didn't care. I knew that now I would become a millionaire," Song stated.
Song also had a rough relationship with the Cameroon national team, after being sent off for punching Mario Mandzukic during a 4-0 group-stage defeat to Croatia at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
He has several investments in Cameroon including a construction company in his hometown of Douala, a fashion business named Systeme Tchakap, and a connection with a school in Yaounde.
In early 2015 Song quit the Indomitable Lions after being left out of the squad for that year's African Cup of Nations.
In August 2018, he joined Swiss club Sion, but at the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, he was one of nine players sacked for refusing to take a pay cut.
After nine months out of the game, Arta Solar came calling. Song immediately brought a title to Arta Solar, as they beat second-placed AS Port 4-2 to seal the 2021 title with two games left to play.
They are currently top of the table again this campaign, meaning another crack at the CAF Champions League is on the cards.