Cesc to Arsenal: Essential Commodity or a Liablity?
by Manjunathan S
This post is my cheeky take on the Cesc Fabregas situation. For the past one week, rumor mills and gossip-mongers are working overtime proclaiming that Cesc Fabregas’ love affair with Barcelona may be, MAY BE all but over and a return to Arsenal is on the cards. Remember rumors are like grey hairs on your head, it only spreads; ask George Clooney if I’m wrong and the spreading rate is greater than the news of Aishwarya Rai becoming a mommy. I hear stories like…Cesc Fabregas on his way to Arsenal? Tito Vilanova (manager of Barcelona) cannot find a place for Cesc in his team… Fabregas frustrated with life as a benchwarmer in Barcelona and …blah blah blah. Personally I don’t pay much heed to all such stories, but, I was squeezed into writing on this subject after I read Fabregas’ interview with Radio Marca. We shall delve into this interview a little later in the post after a very brief introduction to Cesc Fabregas and his protracted transfer to FC Barcelona from Arsenal FC; and this is for all those who are new to following football and my non-football following friends. And those who are already familiar with it read it again.
Cesc Fabregas, born May 4, 1987 (age 25) is a professional footballer who has made 70 appearances for the Spanish national team and plays for FC Barcelona as a midfielder. Although his primary position is a central midfielder he has occasionally played as a False 9 (second striker) or as a winger. He was supposedly “poached” (the term often used instead of ‘signed’ by those who envy the manager of Arsenal, Arsene Wenger) by Arsenal FC in September 2003 from FC Barcelona at the age of 16. It was at Arsenal where he established himself as the best midfielder of his generation. He then caught the prying eyes of Barcelona who upon seeing their former youth product reach new heights started tapping him up on the pre-text that he has their DNA. And just as your head and eyeballs move in tandem when you see a curvy-sexy girl passing before you, the lure of playing for Barcelona was so flattering that he began to think the princess of Spain is prettier than that of England.
So it began; the most drawn out transfer saga in the history of Arsenal. While the transfer saga was longer than Usain Bolt’s legs, one would expect the transfer fee to be at least as big as, if not bigger than Kim Kardashian’s booty. But we settled for her sister’s; if you know what I mean. Yes, we put a £40 (€51) million valuation on him, and wanted to suck every penny of his valuation from Barca; but they ended up being the biggest suckers (pun intended) by snaring the best player at the club and begging to pay just €35m; that too on EMI. Though Cesc conducted himself in a gentlemanly manner amidst all this brouhaha it was clear that he desperately wanted to return to Barca and did so in the summer of 2011. Their (re)union was similar to a prodigal son meeting his mother long after he was lost as a kid in Kumbh mela. Dream debut as they say awaited him as he won the Supercup (although nothing super in that except the name). And as if it was not enough, chaddi-buddies Messi and Cesc re-kindled their teenage chemistry almost instantly and both lit up the La-Liga scoring goals as well as assisting each others’ goals. I wondered if this is what they called heydays.
Fast forward a year and bright days soon became bleak, his form dipped that cost his place in the team and soon the same people who cheered him started jeering at him. Perhaps he must have now understood that people help in undressing each other when they are in an urgency, but once the task is complete they should dress up themselves; no one will help then. He knows that a player of his caliber should not be rotting on the bench and has now come out and expressed his frustration at the lack of playing time. Here is what he apparently told Radio Marca in his interview:
‘There’s no such thing as a great substitute in the world of football.
‘I couldn’t tell you what makes a great substitute.
‘I always wish my team-mates well and put a happy face on.
‘If I have to take my unhappy face home then so be it, but I would never let my team-mates or manager see it.’
‘Everybody likes to play every minute of the season,’ he added.
‘I’ve always said that I play for the best team in the world, but I came here to compete, to learn and enjoy, not to sit wracking my brains.
‘The manager knows what I can offer. But across the three positions that I can play, I am competing with the three best players in the world.”
‘But I will not make it easy for him to do so, by any means. I will keep going, looking forward to the time that things change.’
‘I came here to see out my career.’
Now Gooners, I know many of you have already rolled out the red carpet to welcome him. As much as you all do, in some corner of my heart even I hope he returns to Arsenal but is that the answer we all are looking for. I am not being a cynic, may be he will return to Arsenal but would you welcome him? Do you think he will walk straight into the current starting eleven? Will you sacrifice the growth of a young prodigy on the cusp of making it big for the sake of proven talent who left us when we were in dire need of him? Would you risk disrupting the harmony and chemistry of the players just when we all think we can move on from the hangover of Cesc and Van Persie? Okay, I understand the squad will become more competitive but should it be at the cost of the reputation of the club? Bringing Fabregas back will send out a message to the players that they can be bigger than the club. Also I would not want the current crop of players’ growth to be hampered. In a midfield considered the best in the Premier league wouldn’t it be an insult to other players performing admirably well to lose their place to someone who re-joined the club after realizing the new pastures were not as rosy as he thought them to be?
Gooners, though this is what I think I would really like to know your views on this subject. We all know he has told that Arsenal is the only club he would play for if not Barcelona but in his last sentence of the interview he has ruled out a move to any other club. In my opinion Hugh Hefner has a better chance of becoming a father than Fabregas signing for Arsenal. I feel we should respect Fabregas and the moments of brilliance he has produced with us but at the same time we should forget about signing him as a player at least for the season and back the current team and The Man – Wenger to fire us to glory.
Please share your views in the comments section. Should we or shouldn’t we activate his buy-back clause if he ever becomes available? Will he be an essential commodity or a liability?
Arsenal Till I Die!! In Wenger We Trust!!
Agree. Gr8 player bt we dnt want him back to hinder our future for a past. I respect him as a player bt a cum bak at emirater . Sory big gunning no.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Cesc has not changed much. He will still fit into our team right away. Combo of cesc and carzola will be too good with wishere as a super sub. DM should be diaby, arteta and corquelin. That will be the strongest midfield in EPL
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i say thank you gooner for this analysis and background story, … i say with all due respect, fab should stay where he is and enjoy the music at times it pays to be loyal to a club that showed the light….
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Cesc’s cum bak is a welcome develpmnt but as a big gun while in Arsenal wld he inconvenience d nu crop of players we’ve got,just to play?
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D truth is dat if he comes back,he wl sit on top of everybody in d club.but if truely he can accept every conditn dat may be given to him or d entire Arsenal squard, Fab u ar welcomed.
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Cesc fabregas. He will not return anytime soon. I’m tired and very sad to see how many fans on here can’t move on from cesc. He is a very good player that can’t get into the barcalona side. He left he made it clear his heart was no longer with arsenal but barcalona. We don’t need him anymore but I wish him well. If u was to ask me would u have him of course but it’s time we all moved on from this fabregas torment . And some of the fans that wrote on my bloke that said jack wilshire is not in the same class as cesc lol lol well then jack can’t be that good or they havnt got a rats arse clue about jack wilshire. Cesc fabregas is not one of the best players in the world wat so ever he is not in the top 20 .Fabregas is a outstanding player with great ability and their are players just like him out there. Fabregas is without question a good a very good player but all this best player in the world rubbish (please). Santi carzola is just as good as cesc in my opinion and he proved that at other clubs. I’m very very shocked at the comments from gooners who believe they have great or good knowledge of football but can’t see jack wilshire anywhere close to fabregas yet. To be honest I’m shell shocked.
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I remember the Barca players saying that Jack is a good player and that he would only make the bench or something to that nature. Jack ran the show thelast time we played them. He was thee most impressive player in midfield.
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you are saying this because you are english!!!
Cesc was by far the best we had at delivering the final killer pass(on a consistent basis)…Our Jack is really good but so was Cesc when he was just 16-17…
What would you do John if the best club in the world hailed from your home town and they came calling for you?He has never for once said anything bad against our club(unlike many) and is one of the reasons Cazorla is in our team…
I am not saying Cesc should be brought back or anything
but we should not belittle his abilities either
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Excellant article!!
Very interesting. The way u have mixed it with humour is ausum
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No we do not want him back. Our ‘new boys’ are just beginning to gel and doing a really good job. With Diaby back and all the others now coming back to full fitness, why do we need anyone else? The only person that needs a back up is our No 1 goalkeeper although Mammone has done well with the help of our defense. Stay where you are Cesc.
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I love Cesc so much, I’ll give him my sister for a while month but the truth is will Manchester United do dt for CR7 if he left under dt same circumstance. Hell, no player is ever worth disruptingrecuperating team’s chemistry. I don’t see Cesc ever brandishing our red n white till he’s probably 27, 28. No matter hoe rusty he gets, Arsene’s gonna school him to perfection again! #ThaRealGooner
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Great player but we have already moved on personally I believe building the team around him hindered players like Rosicky and Arshavin now that he’s not there rosicky was able to become the player we all knew he was if Cesc can’t break it into the first team at barca maybe he could try to do so at Milan or if he is to come back(we all know Arsene loves that boy)he should issue a public apology to all gooners everywea and denounce Barcelona for the disgusting way in which they tapped him up
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love this article. spot on! ‘it be an insult to other players performing admirably well to lose their place to someone who re-joined the club after realizing the new pastures were not as rosy as he thought them to be?’ very well said!
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No, we don’t need him.. I’m happy with our midfield now, Santiago, Wilshere, Arteta, Diaby, Rosicky, Ramsey, AOC.. With our current midfield, I don’t see Cesc will be guaranteed to play in our first team.. And don’t forget that we still have Thomas Eisfield and Serge.. Arsenal 4ever..
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Great player, but he lost his focus when it matters most and allows his emotions to overshadow his long-run judgement. We should just let him stay where he has often said his hearts belongs{barca}.Gunners 2 da bone
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lets us not make a mistake,we dont need him,he left us when we needed him.
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We don’t need Cesc in arsenal any more.cos Carzola is a better player
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If the story is true we can do anything on fooball in this world.
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Cesc is a good player any time any day ,hour Can come back to arsenal , we need to ve a gud team and a gud reserve just like any other gud teams in d world , we ve so many games to play and we need to rest some players to avoid fatigue.
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Cesc was a great player for the goons but he wanted to leave his choice. He left us in the lurch for the great barcelona. It looked good to start with but now he’s crying foul because he is not getting playing time. Ho fuckcking ho tough it out like any true pro. He could have been a gooner legend like rvp could have been if he hadn’t left. I suggest he grows a pair we don’t need rejects.
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Our midfield at the moment is performing well, but why not strengthen it? Cesc would fit in perfectly. If the incredible happens and he resigns, we play – Arteta, cesc and Cazorla.
Give it a season, allow Wilshere to fully heal – then play Wilshere/arteta rotation with cesc and cazorla. Untill you eventually have a Wilshere, cesc and one other midfielder.
Still feel it will be unlikely to happen though…
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Very lovely article,my take is as long as fabulous can apologise he is everly welcome,he is not a scum like nasri and adebayor moresore arsenal make money on him,if he come back now he will really know the different,and that arsenal is the best team in the world
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Very lovely article,my take is as long as fabulous can apologise he is everly welcome,he is not a scum like nasri and adebayor moresore arsenal make money on him,if he come back now he will really know the different,and that arsenal is the best team in the world.and other unsettle star wil learn from him
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If coming back of cse will make arsenal to lift trophy this season, we need him!
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Funny,dreamy,nd creamy! Cesc 2 Arsenal again? Indeed he z versatile boh we loves him when he hate us now he loves us whle we ar not aftr him. Nvrthlss he may cum if he need not as skipper probabbly as a substitute.
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wow! you like referring to celebs huh? anyway i would welcome cesc back.he served us well and he deserves to come home when he feels like.
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This is my first comment on this site and a lovely article by the way. Cesc is an awesome player but bringing him back would hinder the progress and unity of players in our current squad. People do seem to forget the fact that he left us when we were counting on him to stay. What sort of captain leaves his ship? Don’t get me wrong cos deep down, I would take him back as a quality player but what he did to us last summer is simply unforgivable. We need to move on.
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Bring Fabregas and make him play as a false 9, instead of playing in the midfield.
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Fabregas was a great player for us and still is a great player.
I have nothing but respect for him as a player.
But if we want people to respect our club we have to prove we are bigger than the player.
You may be tired of hearing the name Alex Song
But he was here for 7 years with three years still left on his deal.
That three years would have made 10 years and entitled him to a testimonial….Remember those?
They represented a players committment, consistancy loyalty and affection for a club. All the things we say we want our players to have.
They also gave us fans a chance to say thanks.
I just find it sad that people change the rules because they think more of one player than they do about someone else.
I cannot remember another testimonial at the Emirates since Dennis Bergkamp’s which was the first game there. They seem to be a thing of the past.
Song Wanted that but Fabregas did’nt.
That should mean more to us fans. But obviously not.
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What!?!
How have you came to the conclusion that song who was at arsenal 6 years (plus one loan season) and made 138 appearances. Is wanted a testimonial more than Cesc who stayed 8 years and made 212 appearances!!
absolute NONSENSE!
Cesc was 100% more committed to Arsenal football club than song, if you don’t see that then your blinded by betrayal!
Cesc left to join the team he supports, Song just left…
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Cesc was and is a better player than Song. there is no debate about that.
My point is one wanted to stay and the other wanted to go
I know how many games they both played but that does not define more committment.
young players go out on loan all the time as part of their development but still belong to the so called parent club.
If you identify with Fabregas more than Song fare enough.
But i will always judge the committment of a player or person by their willingness to stay and make a difference.
And i would not.More importanly i would lable them as more committed than someone they left behind.
We clearly see the world differently.
In any other walk of life, if someone said “I am committed but i’m leaving”.They would be rightly seen as unreliable.
Wenger has always said he is committed to Arsenal and has proved it by staying as long as he has.
We are talking about someone being committed to Arsenal who plays for someone else.You used the word betrayal which is fitting.The word loyalty will come up again soon when certain fans will demand it from the next big name to leave.It will be interesting to see how many Cesc fans jump on their soap boxes.
This site is about opinions so lets just agree to disagree.
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Magic, are you really alright?, you must be making a mistake by making a world finest and complete midfielder at such a young age (jack Wilshere) a true gunner DNA to be a supper sub. Just to create a space for Cesc Return, in as much as i love him to return i woundnt want him to bench Wilshere or Ox.
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I personal would put a cheeky offer to have cesc on loan from jan till the end of the season, this will benieft both parties.
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Cesc was too special, eeverything had to go through him and that slowed us down. In England, having Cesc play with Cazorla would make us too physically weak in the midfield. OK in Spain to do that, not in Premier league.
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I think every arsenal fan respect for his contribution when he was in arsenal & I do respect him as our old player & international talented man but, to back to arsenal in the cost of young players it is unacceptable bc he left club by his own will so it’s not good to bring this guy. However bringing fabrigas back to arsenal is not bad for title position.
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not as gd as carzola.a liability but a bench warmer.we r better off without him.let him watch the game.up gunners.
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Thank you so much for reading and expressing your views…you guys made my day.. the response has been phenomenal for my very first article… hope to come with better articles next time onwards.
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Lets just wait until he is available or ready to come back. my guess is that when xavi retires cesc will step up. but if that doesnt happen then he will be welcome to return. arteta rosicky and arshavin are all around 30+ so spaces will emerge also younger players like ramsey coquelin and frimpong may well have lost their patience by then too.
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Cazorla can play out wide on the right, if cesc comes back any time soon. No one loses his place in the team, with the exception of walcott.
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Let cesc forget it thomos esfield and chuks will come good
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A great player he was and still he is. But even when he comes back he may not find a place in first team. Carzola looks brighter than Cesc. I would rather stick with Carzola than Cesc. I wish him the best though.
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How can u say that u don’t want cesc back? Would u prefer ramsey or arshavin to him?? We know that he is better than them. Rosicky is 32 and is injury prone while fabregas is 25…he still has a couple of years to continue playing. If he is committed,I feel why not? And for those saying he left us so we should forget him,remember two wrongs don’t make a right
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Fabregas has gone forget him
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High 5 that man….
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He even said himself he wants to retire with Barcelona. Just drop it. He ain’t coming back!
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