Robin van Persie, currently manager of Feyenoord and one of the finest strikers of the 2010s, recently shared an anecdote on a podcast, admitting that he came very close to joining Barcelona shortly after leaving England.
In the first episode of the Dutch sports podcast SEG Stories, Van Persie sat alongside current Bayer Leverkusen manager Erik ten Hag, former footballer Kevin Strootman, and others. During the light-hearted conversation, the Dutch forward was asked if there was anything that had personally affected him. He replied, "I always dreamed of playing for Barcelona. In 2015, after I had been at Fenerbahçe for a few months, my then-agent Kees told me that Barcelona were talking about me—it was a very realistic option." However, reality dealt Van Persie a heavy blow. “After a while, he called to tell me it wasn't going to happen, that the move fell through. To be honest, I was really eager to join them, but it just didn't work out.”
In 2015, Barcelona's head coach was Luis Enrique. The Spanish manager was looking for a striker to allow the 'MSN' trio to rest. The 32-year-old Van Persie was well-suited for this role, but Fenerbahçe's excessive financial demands and the Dutch star's high salary caused the deal to collapse. Months later, Barcelona signed the young Paco Alcácer, putting Van Persie's dream to rest. Van Persie eventually returned to Feyenoord in 2018 and retired a year later.
During his career, Van Persie faced Barcelona twice, in the 2010-11 UEFA Champions League round of 16. He scored a goal in the first leg to help the Gunners win 2-1, but was sent off with a red card in the second leg, and Barcelona eventually reversed the tie with a 3-1 victory.
