Arsenal boss wants Cesc Fábregas to lead title charge
Arsenal Football Club manager Arsene Wenger has laid down the law to Cesc Fábregas, urging his want-away captain to drive the club to the English Premier League (EPL) title this season. Wenger has claimed achieving that goal would surpass anything the midfielder could possible achieve at his potential suitors Barcelona.
Fábregas has been at the middle of this summer’s biggest transfer saga, with the La Liga champions being relentless in their attempts to secure the signature of the 2010 FIFA World Cup winner. Arsenal, however, have refused to play ball and give way to Barca’s bid to bring the 23-year-old back to the Camp Nou, where he was part of the Spanish giants’ youth set-up before leaving for the bright lights of London in 2003 at the age of 16.
Stance criticised
Players and officials at the Catalan giants have criticised Arsenal’s hard-line stance over Fábregas. Barca captain Carles Puyol told The Sun that "(Fábregas) is having to stay at a club where he no longer wants to be for another year. I wonder how intelligent it is keeping a player who doesn't want to be there.” New signing David Villa has also told of his eagerness to team up with Fábregas at club level, saying: “He wants to play here and it will be quite normal if Arsenal finally do a deal. That would be great. A player of his ability will only increase our power.”
However, Wenger has insisted the player will remain at the Emirates Stadium, and has no fears that the playmaker’s mind may be in Catalonia. Ahead of his club’s Emirates Cup clashes with Serie A outfit AC Milan and Scottish Premier League (SPL) runners-up Celtic, Wenger told reporters that: "I always said Cesc Fábregas will be our captain next year and that we want to keep him. Despite all the speculation last season and the whole summer, nothing has changed. Look at the length of his contract and you will see he has five or six years to go. He has always said he's committed to the club and the best way to show you're committed is to give your best when you walk on the pitch and he has always done that."
‘Fed up’
Reports have claimed that the midfielder is fed up of life in London, especially as it has been five years since Arsenal last won a trophy. Having watched many of his international teammates gain honour after honour at Barca, it has been claimed Fábregas is desperate to join a team which rarely fails to win silverware.
However, Wenger said that spurring Arsenal on to become the champions of the EPL would be a far more fulfilling and rewarding challenge for his skipper. He said: "It's important we focus on the targets we have together. There's a great attitude and spirit inside the squad and Cesc Fábregas can help us achieve these targets. He's now 23 years old and has just won the World Cup. I believe he will grow in authority again for next season. The biggest achievement for him now is to help us win the championship."
Wenger also discussed the players he hopes Fábregas will lead to glory in the upcoming season. After falling behind eventual champions Chelsea and Manchester United at the business end of the season, he believes his young squad will be capable of mounting a strong challenge for the title – without having to shell out on an expensive revamp of his first team. He said: "Do I think we have a team to play at the top? Looking at the players we have, I say yes. Have other clubs more money or less money? It is not important. It is whether they have better players or lesser players and I think we can compete with the players we have.”
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