Former Gunner Captain Gilberto has passed his medical and signed a multi-year deal with Greek club Panathinaikos, who paid just over 1 Million Pound to Arsenal.

After making 244 appearances and scoring 24 goals for Arsenal in all competitions while being captain during their 2003/04 unbeaten season, Gilberto had lost his defensive midfield role to Mathieu Flamini (who just signed with AC Milan on a free transfer), with Arsene Wenger seemingly losing faith in the 31 year old.

Surprising considering Gilberto, using more of a shadowing defensive technique with the focus on pushing players backwards instead of diving in on the ball, twice went 45+ Premiership matches without receiving a booking.   Just last season Gilberto was named alongside Frank Lampard and Paul Scholes as the only Premiership players that play at an “Elite Champions League Level” game in and out, according to Pro Zone (a data analysis used by all of the managers).

image via Football