ENGLISH PREMIERSHIP:CESC FABREGAS is staying at Arsenal after Barcelona failed in their protracted and often tortuous summer-long campaign to lure the Spain midfielder back to the Camp Nou. Arsenal's captain held talks with Arsene Wenger, the manager, yesterday and the upshot is that he has been persuaded to remain at the club.
It is not outlandish to suggest Barcelona will be back in for Fabregas next summer but for at least the forthcoming season, Arsenal will keep their talisman. There is a mixture of relief and triumph at the north London club and with the key piece of his jigsaw firmly in place, Wenger can look ahead with optimism to the new season.
Arsenal rejected a bid of €35 million from Barcelona on June 1st and it has also become increasingly clear the Spanish champions have not had the funds to make even Wenger think again.
At the beginning of the summer, it was possible Arsenal might have entertained the notion had Barcelona made a truly massive offer. Sources at Arsenal suggested money of “Cristiano Ronaldo proportions” – in other words, a figure to rival the €96 million Real Madrid paid to Manchester United for the Portuguese winger last summer – might have compelled them to wonder whether the pros could have outweighed the cons.
But as the weeks have ticked by towards the new season, the chances of that have receded and Wenger’s stance has hardened to the point where he might, hypothetically, have ignored a transfer request from Fabregas. The player, despite Barcelona’s cajoling, was never going to follow that drastic course of action.
Fabregas reported back for pre-season training yesterday, following his exertions for Spain in their World Cup-winning campaign, and he trained with team-mates in front of an estimated 10,000 fans at the members’ day at the Emirates Stadium. Arsenal also had their official photocall, in which Fabregas took his place.
There has been anger behind the scenes at Arsenal over the manner in which the Catalans have courted their midfielder. Barcelona players, including Xavi, Carles Puyol, Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta, had urged Fabregas to return to the club where he started his career.
Wenger’s thoughts are now on the new season, and whether Fabregas and the striker Robin van Persie, who also returned to training yesterday having played for the Netherlands in the World Cup final on July 11th, will be ready for the opening Premier League fixture against Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday week.
Wenger has said he feels both will be “short”. Arsenal play their final pre-season friendly at Legia Warsaw tomorrow and neither is expected to feature. Wenger is keen to strengthen his squad and is interested in Montpellier’s Bosnian international Emir Spahic.
