SM
Watford vs. Leeds: 5 hrs 8 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

5 Things Cesc Fabregas brought to English football

:Headline: 5 Things Cesc Fabregas brought to English football: ID:346579: from db_amp
Goals, assists, flair – and pizza...

Cesc Fabregas has moved to Monaco after playing for Arsenal and Chelsea in the Premier League. Here Press Association Sport looks at five things the Spain playmaker contributed to English football.

Academy import

Cesc Fabregas was mentored by Arsene Wenger at Arsenal (Nick Potts/PA)

Fabregas was among the first non-native talents to emerge at a Premier League club as a teenager. He swapped Barcelona's youth system for Arsenal's in September 2003. A month later, he became the Gunners' youngest-ever player, aged 16 years and 177 days, and in December 2003 he became their youngest scorer. That season the Gunners won the Premier League title, but Fabregas did not feature in the league, so did not receive a winners' medal.

Giving Ferguson a slice

The 'Battle of the Buffet', which followed the end of Arsenal's 49-game unbeaten league run, attracted notoriety for a pizza slice hitting Sir Alex Ferguson in the aftermath of Manchester United's 2-0 win at Old Trafford. It took 13 years before Fabregas, on a television game show, confirmed he was the perpetrator. Martin Keown had previously pointed the finger at his team-mate, saying: "It was a Spanish fella with great technique. Even when it came to the pizza he had great technique. He threw it like a Frisbee."

The future is bright, the future is Fabregas

Cesc Fabregas emerged as Arsenal's talisman when Patrick Vieira and others left (Sean Dempsey/PA)

Fabregas' emergence suggested the future of Arsenal was in good hands, even after Patrick Vieira and others departed, but 2003-04 was Arsenal's most recent title success. Fabregas won one trophy at Arsenal, the 2004-05 FA Cup. The Gunners perennially finished in the top four and finished Champions League runners-up in 2005-06. But the financial constraints of moving from Highbury to the Emirates Stadium contributed to a weakening of the squad, even with Fabregas as talisman.

Patience in pursuit of silverware

Cesc Fabregas won his first Premier League title under Jose Mourinho at Chelsea (Mike Egerton/PA)

Fabregas captained Arsenal from 2008 to 2011, but with the desired trophy success absent – apart from the 2008 European Championships and 2010 World Cup with Spain – he moved back to Barcelona. Fabregas returned to England after three seasons with Barca, but Arsene Wenger opted not to take up a reported option and Fabregas joined Chelsea. He won the Premier League title at the first attempt, taking a winners' medal 11 years after Arsenal's last championship victory.

A 'magic hat'

Fabregas' creativity spurned a song at Chelsea: 'Fabregas is magic, he wears a magic hat...' Blue fans often serenaded the Spain playmaker's genius as he picked apart defences in the 2014-15 title-winning season. They have done so frequently since. Fabregas has 111 Premier League assists, second only to Ryan Giggs, but in little more than half the number of games (350 to 632).

amp_article__346579 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2019-01-21 14:52:53:
html db last update - 2021-03-08 11:54:30 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html
Share this article now:
Read more about Cesc Fabregas Football
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal28204470244664
2Liverpool28197265263964
3Manchester CityMan City28196363283563
4Aston Villa29175760421856
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs28165759421753
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd28152113939047
7West Ham UnitedWest Ham2912894650-444
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2811985044642
9Wolverhampton WanderersWolves28125114244-241
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle281241259481140
11Chelsea27116104745239
12Fulham29115134344-138
13Bournemouth2898114152-1135
14Crystal Palace2878133348-1529
15Brentford2975174154-1326
16Everton2887132939-1025
17Luton TownLuton2957174260-1822
18Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest2967163551-1621
19Burnley2945202963-3417
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd2835202474-5014
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .