( CNN ) -- Barcelona midfielder Alexander Hleb has turned down a move to Inter Milan in favor of returning to Bundesliga club Stuttgart on loan for the season . Alexander Hleb is presented to the media after completing his loan move to former club Stuttgart . Hleb had been expected to be part of the swap deal that saw Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Samuel Eto ' o switch clubs earlier this week . But the 28-year-old Belarus international has opted against joining Cameroon striker Eto ' o at the San Siro due to the limited prospects of regular football under Jose Mourinho , and instead decided to return to Germany . Hleb left Stuttgart four years ago to move to English Premier League side Arsenal , where he spent three seasons -- including reaching the Champions League final in 2006 , which the Gunners lost to Barcelona . Top 20 summer transfer targets . Hleb eventually ended up moving to the Nou Camp last summer , but struggled to claim a place in the side and was omitted from the 18-man squad that beat Manchester United in this year 's Champions League final . Hleb told Stuttgart 's official Web site he had moved to Markus Babbel 's side because of their prospects for the coming season . `` I have opted for Stuttgart because the team has great potential and I am convinced that we can achieve a lot together , '' the 28-year-old said . Stuttgart general manager Horst Heldt added : `` We have signed a world class player with Alexander Hleb . He will increase the quality of our squad even further . '' Stuttgart had seen moves for both Real Madrid 's Klaas Jan Huntelaar and Vagner Love of CSKA Moscow break down in recent weeks .
Barcelona midfielder Alexander Hleb has turned down a switch to Inter Milan . Hleb had been expected to be part of the Ibrahimovic and Eto ' o swap transfer . However , he has chosen to rejoin former club Stuttgart in a one-year loan deal .