The 27 year old was almost instantaneously linked with a move to the North London club as soon as Barcelona made their intentions clear that they were finally willing to offload a player they had spent an awful lot of desire to sign three years back.
When Fabregas left the club in 2011 he reiterated his desire to one day return to the club he had spent eight years at and claimed that if he was ever to leave Barcelona, Arsenal would be his preferred destination.
Arsene Wenger himself was very fond of the prodigal midfielder and during the transfer dealings with Barcelona, the French tactician had a clause inserted which would reportedly give Arsenal the option of first refusal should Fabregas be placed in the transfer market.
But things have not panned out the way everyone thought they would and as things stand, Chelsea are favorites to sign the Spanish international with Arsenal having turned down the chance of bringing their former captain back to the Emirates.
Cesc surplus to requirements?
Despite his undeniable quality, the fact remains that a creative midfielder is not a top priority for Arsenal. The current Arsenal squad is budding with creative talent and Fabregas’ arrival would make it very difficult for Wenger to accommodate all of his prodigal talents.
Ramsey’s performances in the last season have helped him cement a place in the starting eleven and it is easy to say that no one will be able to displace the Welshman. Mesut Ozil despite of not living to his lofty standards had a decent season and having spent a club record 42.5 million pounds on him, Wenger as well as Arsenal fans will definitely be hoping for better things to come from the German. Jack Wilshere on the other hand is Arsenal’s golden boy and Wenger would surely not be willing to sacrifice him for a player who fought his way out of the club.
Whereas it has been suggested that Wenger has been allotted a 100 million transfer kitty it is unlikely that the former Monaco boss will be willing to spend ludicrous amounts, it would thus be wiser for Arsenal to use the money to strengthen areas which need attention.
Changing the system
Fabregas’ arrival might lift the spirits at the Emirates and will settle well for a section of the fans, but it might not ultimately bode well for the team on the whole. In order to accommodate the Chelsea bound midfielder Wenger will have to change the system which might put a number of players into uncomfortable positions, this might not be the smartest thing to do.
Those advocating Fabregas’ move back to Arsenal also seem to be pointing out the Spaniard’s ability to adjust to a number of positions. The 27 year old has accustomed himself to various roles during his playing career. He used to play in a deeper role during his early days at Arsenal, adjusted to a position higher up the field as the man behind the striker and has also played a false nine role for Barcelona as well as the Spanish national team. But one has to question why Barcelona, a club which was so eager to get his signature are now equally frantic to get rid of him. The answer is simple, Fabregas like any other player flourishes most when played in his most preferred position and given the fact that Arsenal already have sufficient creative midfielders in the squad, his addition might not be fruitful.
The Dein factor
Whereas Arsenal or Arsene never explicitly claimed it the club are not very fond of Darren Dein the son of David Dein, former vice chairman of Arsenal football club. Dein has represented several former Arsenal players including the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Thiery Henry, Adebayor, Gael Clichy, Alex Song and has also had a lot of influence on Robin Van Persie and in his attempt to get the best for his clients he has brokered a deal for most of them away from the club.
At present there is not a single Darren Dein client in the Arsenal roster whereas the transfer of a quality player to the club should not have much bearing on the agent, it has been reported that Arsenal will do their best to avoid much contact with a man who in the past had a lot of influence in the Arsenal dressing room.
Fabregas will improve Arsenal for the better
Despite the fact that the Spaniard is not what Arsenal exactly need at the moment, it can easily be said that he will add spark to the current Arsenal side and help them to achieve bigger things in the coming years.
After having ended a nine year trophy drought, Fabregas’ arrival might be exactly what Arsenal need in order to continue challenging for major honors. Even though the Arsenal squad is enriched with creative players, Fabregas would add a new dimension, his vision and effectiveness in the final third in particular will really benefit the club.
Adding depth to the squad
There are very few things which have contributed more to Arsenal’s recently ended trophy drought than the injury crisis at the club. The Gunners’ squad has been limited to bare bones time and time again, which has heavily contributed to their dip in form after the turn of the year every season.
Their inability to cope without their star players was evident once again last season as an Arsenal squad without the likes of Aaron Ramsey and Theo Walcott not only conceded their top spot which they had occupied for 128 days, but at one point were considered likely to finish out of the top four.
Adding Fabregas to the roster will not just provide insurance for a future injury crisis, but it will also allow Arsene to rotate the squad without compromising on quality.
As things stand Chelsea are favorites to land the former Arsenal man with Man United considered as outside contenders. Only time will tell whether Arsenal will pay the price for missing out on a world class midfielder, but should Wenger address the key areas in the squad and bring in world class players, it might all be forgotten soon.
