Cesc could be sidelined for three weeks

According to the Daily Mail, Arsene Wenger was forced to turn to Fabregas in Sunday’s meeting with Villa with the scoreline goalless. As we know, coming off the bench in the second half Fabregas produced a stunning 27-minute cameo, scoring twice before being forced off with a suspected recurrence of the injury which had keep him out for nigh on a fortnight.

Now the paper says we are now facing up to the prospect of losing their influential skipper for a further three weeks meaning he will miss Wednesday’s trip to Portsmouth, the FA Cup third round tie against West Ham and the two league encounters against Bolton which sandwich Everton’s visit to the Emirates.
If all goes according to plan, Fabregas should be available to play in the FA Cup fourth round on January 23rd providing Arsenal make it that far.

But the Mail adds that crucially Fabregas should be back to face Aston Villa and Manchester United in the Barclays Premier League at the end of next month. Meanwhile in the Sun this morning, Thomas Vermaelen reckons Fabregas’ vision is so good… he must have eyes in the back of his head.

Vermaelen said: “Cesc gives passes, a good line of defence and he is really dangerous. He has great vision on the pitch. He is the best midfield player I have played with. He is really smart.

“In training it is really difficult to defend against him. You’d think he had eyes in the back of his head because he sees everything. I’ve never seen a player come on before and have such an immediate impact.

“Before he came on I think we were the better team but we didn’t create too many chances. When he came on the pitch we controlled the game more and created some more chances.”

He added: “He is a good captain, he talks well in the dressing-room, although not too much, but just enough. He is very important for us. So is Robin van Persie who is also injured. But we have other midfielders who can fill Cesc’s position.”

Andrey Arshavin has also hailed Fabregas’ contribution to the Gunners’ charge towards their first title in six years – and wishes he was more like the Spanish maestro.

Russian Arshavin said: “Cesc changed the course of the game. I would so much like to play the way he does. It was brilliant how he came on for 20 or 30 minutes, scored twice and was then replaced.

“He was great. I very much hope his injury won’t put him out for long. For now I feel really happy that we could achieve a victory which we needed so much. The most important thing is that we narrowed the gap on Chelsea.”

Midfielder Denilson is also a doubt for Portsmouth as problems mount for Wenger, adds the redtop. The Brazilian will also find out today whether he needs a rest after feeling pain in his back. The same problem kept him out for two months at the start of the season.

And Alex Song has been given permission to join Cameroon after Sunday’s FA Cup game with West Ham as they prepare for the African Nations Cup, starting on January 10. Emmanuel Eboue has already left to join Ivory Coast.

Eldo71

Arsenal fan for 40 years. Schoolboys, North Bank, Clock End then East Upper. Then Emirates. AFC dream team: Wilson, Dixon, Sansom, Adams, Pates, Brady, Williams, Pires, Bergkamp, Henry, Wright. Subs: Seaman, Eldridge, Wilshere, RVP, Ball. Manager: Arsene Chapman.

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