32 Greatest footballers in the history of the English Premier League - Part 4
29. Cesc Fabregas:
Cesc Fabregas is a Spanish footballer who plays as a central midfielder. He is the Arsenal captain and also a player in Spain’s national team.
Fabregas started his career from Barcelona’s youth team in Spain. However, it was English club Arsenal who saw the talented boy and inked a deal in September 2003. As a result, Cesc Fabregas made it to England’s top league when he was only 16 years old.
The main reason why Fabregas actually left Barcelona was because of the fear that he might not make it to Barcelona’s main team. With players like Xavi, Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Ronaldinho in the squad, there was simply no chance for the Spanish
starlet to shine in the Blaugrana jersey.
He did not really adapt in the English club early on and it was hard for him to become a part of the “fast flowing” flavour of football. Later in the season, he found a Spanish speaking friend Philippe Senderos and he was the one who helped Fabregas settle
down. While Fabregas was 16 years old, players like Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva were performing for Arsenal and throughout the early years, he did not really look to burst out into the first team and he kept on learning from senior players at the club.
He did not make his debut until the 23rd of October when Arsenal faced Rotherham United in a League Cup tie at home. He is still considered as the youngest player ever to feature for Arsenal’s first team. He was only 16 years and 177 days old
when he played his first match for the English club. Records didn’t stop for him as he also managed to become Arsenal’s youngest “goal scorer.” The goal came off against the English team Wolverhampton Wanderers and it was during the League Cup when Arsenal
won the match 5-1. In the 2003-2004 season Arsenal won the league without losing a match but Fabregas didn’t receive a medal because he did not feature for the team even once.
However, during the 2004-2005 season, the Spaniard started to make his first team appearance and this time round, it was not only during the League Cups. He featured for the Community Shield matches against Manchester United after Patrick Vieira got injured
and Fabregas was the player who stepped in to take his place in four consecutive Premier League matches. The performances were not “usual,” as he was praised because Fabregas showed great form in all the matches that he started for.
The four matches also included a 3-0 win over Blackburn Rovers in which Fabregas became Arsenal’s youngest goal scorer ever in a league game. Later on, Edu and Gilberto Silva were injured and it was Fabregas who got more first team opportunities at this
English club. In 2004, Fabregas finally signed a professional contract with Arsenal. Things weren’t yet finished for the Spaniard as the 2004-2005 Champions League saw this Spaniard become the second youngest goal scorer in the history of the competition.
The goal came off against Rosenberg as Arsenal won the match 5-1.
In 2006, he helped Arsenal reach the final of the UEFA Champions League as they had to face his former side Barcelona. Arsenal had Fabregas and Henry while Barcelona was relying on Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto’o. The match was simply eye catching but it was
Barcelona who won the final match as Arsenal was a man down early into the match. However, Barcelona won it 2-1 to win the UEFA Champions League for the second time.
Fabregas was a roaring success in club football, but he still had to make a name for himself in the Spanish team. In the under-17 FIFA World Championship, Fabregas featured as a first team player. He performed extraordinary well in 2006 and he was called
up for the Spanish World Cup squad in the same year. So far, he has played in 2 World Cups, FIFA World Cup 2006 and FIFA World Cup 2010. He was also a part of the Euro 2008 as his team won the tournament. Later, he also bagged himself a “winning-goal-assist”
as the Spaniards won the FIFA World Cup 2010.
Tags: