Cesc Fabregas has committed to staying with Arsenal. Fabregas released a statement yesterday saying that he has finally made his decision to stay in North London. This is great news for Arsenal, but a big blow to Barcelona, who expected to see Cesc come back to Spain.
Here is a statement from Fabregas (all quotes and statements acquired from soccernet.espn.go.com): "Firstly I would like to apologise to all the Arsenal fans for not speaking sooner about my future but I have not known what I was going to do until this moment.
"I cannot deny that joining a club like Barcelona was not an attractive move for me.
"This was the club where I learnt my football, it is my home town where my friends and family are and a club where I have always dreamed of playing. There are not many players in the world who would not want to play for Barcelona.
"I have had many conversations with Arsene Wenger both in person and over the phone over the last few months and although the content of those conversations will remain private, the conclusion is that Barcelona have had two formal offers rejected by Arsenal.
"I am a professional and I fully understand that it is Arsenal's prerogative not to sell me. I owe a lot to the club, manager and the fans and I will respect their decision and will now concentrate on the new season ahead with Arsenal.
"I can assure all the fans that now the negotiations have ended I will be 100% focused on playing for Arsenal. I am an Arsenal player and as soon as I step out on to the pitch, that is the only club I will be thinking about. I am looking forward to the start of the season and putting this speculation behind me."
It is clear that Fabregas has just made his decision, or else he would have come out with it sooner than a week before the league begins. I believe Arsene Wenger is the main reason he stayed. Wenger signs young players and turns them into stars. He owes a lot to the club, and I didn't believe he would abandon the team that gave him a chance right before the season begins.
Obviously this news is a huge relief for manager Arsene Wenger. Here is Wenger on Fabregas: "He is our captain, he is our leader.
"You could see in the training session how much a lift it is for everybody who loves Arsenal. When I was at the World Cup I met so many people in South Africa and the first thing I heard was 'Don't let Fabregas go'. That means it is a huge lift for everybody who loves the club.
"The situation is as it is. I believe it is important in my job that I do not come out with private conversations I have with the players. That would be unfair. But Cesc has come out to clear the air. It was very important for us that Cesc did that clearly and that we can move on from now. We are one week away from the start of the season so just we want to be focused and settled now.''
It is great news that this situation is finally resolved and the Premiership is stronger because of it. If Cesc left North London, there may be one less team competing for the top spot.
No comments:
Post a Comment