Yes, i remeber a lot of people were crazy about Gilberto that year. But i didn't like him and, apparently, neither did Wenger. It was a surprise when he didn't get the armband and was dropped from the first eleven. This was one of the brilliant moves Wenger made that summer. The other being the aquisition of Sagna when no one saw a need for a right back.
I was glad when he started playing Flamini and then got Diarra because he was making all the right moves for that DM position. If they hadnt both left that year we'd have probably won a trophy by now.
And Flamini was better than Arteta, but yes, Mikel is a very good player.
