Cesc Fabregas will always be appreciated for his contribution to Arsenal however, the midfielder has some bridges to rebuild with fans.
Rewind to the years prior to 2011 and Fabregas could do no wrong in Arsenal’s eyes but, the Spaniard’s reputation in North London quickly degraded.
From being spotted in a Barcelona shirt while still under contract at Arsenal to then going on to sign for Chelsea, Fabregas’ legacy has certainly split opinion in N5.
Putting opinion aside, the former midfielder’s quality on the pitch cannot be denied, as he schooled many opposition players alongside a list of remarkable teammates.
Cesc Fabregas snubbed Invincibles in dream team selection
Now the manager of Como in Italy, Fabregas couldn’t stay away from the action for long after retiring.
Perhaps one day the Spaniard could even return to North London but, as mentioned, he’d have a few difficult conversations to have beforehand.
While the former player has mixed reviews at Arsenal, he’s still a firm lover of his former club, having praised the Gunners multiple times since leaving.
Fabregas admitted that he left Arsenal too soon before joining Barcelona in 2011, making the tough decision to return to his boyhood club after becoming a cult hero in N5.
On the subject of Fabregas making tough decisions, the World Cup winner was prompted to name his dream team of former teammates by Gary Lineker, where he snubbed three Arsenal Invincibles.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast in 2024, Fabregas named the best goalkeeper, defender, midfielder and forward he played with but, was not allowed to name Lionel Messi.
In goal, the former Gunner mentioned Jens Lehmann but instead chose Iker Casillas and, that’s not where the snubs ended.
His choice defender was Carles Puyol and in midfield, the now Como manager declined Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva to choose Andres Iniesta.
“I am going to go with Iniesta, I love Xavi, I love David Silva, Patrick Vieira, Gilberto Silva I had some great company,” he explained.
While Fabregas chose against some of his Arsenal teammates in other positions, he did not pass on the chance to name Thierry Henry as his favourite forward.
Fabregas applauds ‘unstoppable’ Thierry Henry
Fabregas has praised Henry before, rarely shying away from revealing his admiration for Arsenal’s record goalscorer.
When explaining to Lineker his reason for choosing the Frenchman, the Spaniard called his former teammate ‘unstoppable’.
“I am going to go with Thierry Henry for the reasons that I said to you before, he was so dominant.
“You didn’t play in his time but you watched him. You know how he was, when he was on his day and even when he was not sometimes.
“He was unstoppable. I mean, some defenders, they didn’t really know what to do with him.”
Arsene Wenger considered Fabregas one of his best signings as he acquired the youngster from La Masia, with the ex-midfielder being part of an exceptional era of talent at Arsenal.
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