Arsenal's descent could lead to madness if Fabregas calls it a day

By Martin Lipton in Laptop with Martin Lipton

Published 23:00 08/02/10

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The descent has been steep and dramatic, a seemingly endless battle against gravity.

But while Arsene Wenger insists silverware is just around the corner, the bitter looming reality of a fifth straight campaign without any return puts the spotlight even more on the man at the heart of the Frenchman’s masterplan.

Cesc Fabregas had not kicked a Premier League ball for Arsenal when Wenger’s “Invincibles" rewrote the record books in 2004, a remarkable season in which the Gunners simply refused to be beaten.

That Arsenal team was the living embodiment of Wenger’s vision, a remarkable fusion of pace and power, of vision and commitment, above all a side which truly believed in the pre-game mantra of “Together!”

The Spaniard’s introduction into Wenger’s real first team squad the following August seemed proof of the Arsenal manager’s ability to build on what he had achieved, a brilliant talent, wise beyond his years even at 17, soon emerging as the fulcrum of the long-term project.

Yet that plan has faltered even as Fabregas’ influence has grown.

Where he began as the kid, he is now the captain, a man who has watched all the other members of that title-winning side depart.

Now, with Barcelona ready to step up their determination to lure him back to his spiritual home, Fabregas faces the toughest decision of his career - with the future of Arsenal at stake.

Anybody who questions Fabregas’ commitment to Arsenal and Wenger is patently wrong.

While the midfielder is fiercely proud of his Catalan heritage, he has embraced London life and the demands of English football with the zeal of the most passionate convert.

Watch again his clashes with Frank Lampard at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, the mutual animosity of two men who will fight until the last breath for their cause, and there can be no arguments.

But Fabregas did not leave his homeland to scrap for third, to play for a side that looks no better than Champions League quarter-finalists, that, time and again, is out-thought and out-fought when the really big guns turn the screws.

The past week or so has been a salutary experience for Fabregas, encouraging Barca to begin their latest destabilisation campaign, aimed at easing the midfielder out of the Emirates and in to the Nou Camp.

Fabregas, like Wenger, knew that emerging with even five points from the three-game run against Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool, which ends tomorrow, would have been the springboard for a push for the crown.

Instead, Arsenal have been undressed in public twice in eight days, and a third straight defeat would plunge them into what would be a four or even five-way fight for the last two Champions League places with Rafa Benitez’ side, Spurs, Manchester City and possibly Aston Villa.

That was not in the blueprint Wenger disclosed when he persuaded Fabregas to ignore the siren calls from home last summer, when the Arsenal manager insisted the losses of Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure were unimportant, when he privately believed the door was open for his side to walk through.

The door has been slammed firmly in their faces by United and now Chelsea and while injuries have hurt - especially the absence of Robin Van Persie - it was Wenger’s decision not to spend in the January window that has cost them most dearly.

Wenger insists it was not a mistake, that finishing third means more than winning a Cup, that it is a matter of time before it starts to pay off.

But the angry mood of the disgruntled supporters on a number of Arsenal fans’ forums last night showed that the belief that “Arsene knows" is no longer uniformly held - even if his exit would surely ease the way for Fabregas to follow.

And if Wenger is not going to spend, for whatever reason, if Fabregas starts to feel that rivals are moving further away rather than being reeled back in, the appeal of going back to Barcelona can only increase.

Fabregas already knows he will be the player both Nou Camp Presidential rivals, Sandro Rossell and incumbent Joan Laporta’s protege Alfons Godall, want to claim as their stellar capture.

The Spaniard fuelled the frenzy last week in a radio interview in which he spoke of wanting to return to Barcelona one day and admitting he is no fan of the London weather, although he then kept his intentions deliberately vague.

Barcelona are using their usual media channels to claim Fabregas is increasingly unsettled by the lack of success, that he will turn down any improved contract offer, even that he is now seeking a way of leaving Arsenal in the summer with his head held high.

The latest claim - which looks more like the project of an over-active imagination - is that Fabregas wants Barca to pay around £45million to take him back home, a sum sufficient for Arsenal to go out and recruit seriously to fill the hole his departure would create, allowing him to leave with the understanding of the Emirates supporters.

What does not get asked, of course, is how Fabregas would actually operate in Pep Guardiola’s thinking.

Fabregas, remember, started just three of Spain’s 10 World Cup qualifiers and is likely to travel to South Africa behind Xavi Hernandes, Andres Iniesta, Xabi Alonso and Marcos Senna in Vicente Del Bosque’s pecking order.

Xavi and Iniesta, of course, are cornerstones of Guardiola’s side while Sergio Busquets, Setdou Keita or Yaya Toure are the regular holders - so where, in a team that has to find room for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Lionel Messi and Thierry Henry, does Fabregas fit?

It could be doubts about the regular football he needs, as much as his ties with Arsenal and Wenger, that might keep Fabregas in North London.

If not, if he decides enough is enough, then the fall-out could be huge. For Fabregas, make your mind up time is getting closer. The repercussions of his decision will be immense.

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