In 2000, Overmars and Petit, two tremendously important players, left for Barca. Overmars had a horrid time and Petit returned with Chelsea only after a season.In 2005, Patrick Vieira, captain for Arsenal, left for Juventus in search of more success. He was 29, showed signs of decline and was never quite regained his majestic control in the middle of the park. In 2006, Robert Pires left and Dennis Bergkamp retired from football. Pires was arguably the best winger in the world in 2002. Since the horrific injury that ended his season and chances of a World Cup appearance, he was never back to his best. When he left at the age of 32, he was no longer pacy and he struggled for fitness.He could no longer regain his peak. Dennis retiring was less painful as he was way past his prime at that time.In 2007, captain of Arsenal, Theirry Henry bid farewell after 8 years of excellent service. He was Arsenal's top goalscorer and one of the best ever seen. However, his final season was painful to watch. Plagued by injuries physically and emotionally of losing two of the biggest finals (World Cup and Champions League) in his career saw his season end prematurely and having a lowest scoring total in many years. He left for Barca and did win the CL ,but again, his best days were behind him.
By the time now in 2010, I've seen numerous departures and I've remembered everyone one of them. I still remember in 2000 when the internet was still relatively new, I read the title on Soccernet ;"Overmars -I'm off to Barca". It was really painful at that time even as a 10 year old. When Thierry left, I was also deeply saddened because he was in my view, an Arsenal player for life with no exceptions. At the end, Thierry had an ambition of his own and we respected it.It is really heartbreaking to see good players leave, moving on after that many transfers still creates a lot of uncertainty when seeing a player leave.
For the third time, an Arsenal captain is linked with a move away. This time it is Cesc Fabregas. Undoubtedly the best player on the planet in his position. His maturity and unbelievable talent made him the youngest Arsenal captain in history. Only 23 this year. This possible transfer might be the most painful transfer an Arsenal fan could EVER experience. Cesc is the heartbeat of the team, he makes things work and he delivers very consistently. His vision in passing is phenomenal, he strikes the ball well and his winning attitude and determination is just spot on. And there is no coincidence his name in short means 'Fabulous'.
Does He Deserve To Leave?
Cesc signed an 8 year deal in 2006, the longest contract ever awarded to an Arsenal player. The duration of the contract signaled that even only being in his 2nd year in the senior team, he showed so much promise for the future and created every reason to tie him down. The only other contract I've seen of that length is Lionel Messi and it also contains an exit clause amounting to 150mil euros. And Yes, it is simply because he is too good. Arsenal has been trophyless for the last 5 years, nearly winning on a few occasions, but nearly winning and winning itself is a huge difference.
I would be frustrated if I were him. He is running the show and performing a level higher than everyone else and as a team, he achieves nothing in terms of silverware. The Arsenal team is an extremely good team. But in the reality of football, it doesn't matter how good you are, you need to end up first and only first. 2 seasons ago, Man Utd and Real Madrid won the title on goal difference. In the recent season, Chelsea won the title by a point. Thats how close it has been. Well you can't blame competition for failure and if you have title ambitions you need to be the best. Arsenal have simply failed to be number 1, that mattered. 4th in the Champions League and 3rd in the League, it still doesn't matter. Football is cruel, be top or you're just like any other team.
Who's To Be Blamed?
There can be no fault put on Cesc because he has simply given everything. Is Wenger to be blamed? Well he is the person who brought in Cesc. Like many things in life, someone creates something and in the end that same person messes things up. Similarly, Wenger is held responsible for bringing in Cesc and he would be again responsible if he decides to leave. We all know Wenger developed a project based on transforming young players into world class superstars. But the truth is, Wenger has overestimated the abilities of his youngsters and that's why he has failed to deliver. The understudies of the first team are mainly players who can deliver when being called upon but if they are required to start every game, the inexperience and inconsistency kicks in and points are dropped.
I've been a huge critic of Wenger's transfer policy and I still am. The fact that Cesc is in the league of his own may not necessary be a good thing. There are only two players in his league, Arshavin and Van Persie. And how many games have these 3 players started together, any amount more than 15 would be unlikely. And how many games are there in a season? About 60, and it is clear why Arsenal has failed to win anything. When they play together things go really well but suddenly one or two of them are missing the team struggles. Injuries are one side of the argument, but the real argument is why on earth a team like Arsenal has no other top players to deputise them when needed. Wenger's transfer policy is to be blamed and he could only blame himself if he loses the best player in his team.
A Less Fab Future
Cesc has no doubt been pulling the strings for years, he has kept Arsenal within the comforts of playing Champions League football. The battle for Champions League football finally took a turn this year, with Spurs emerging the "intruder" to the big four. Securing Champions League football hasn't been something Arsenal could take for granted in the past few years. In 2006, Arsenal miraculously edged out Spurs on the last day.In 2009, Villa potentially led by 8 points in March, only to lose steam after. And finally this year, Arsenal needed to avoid defeat on the last day to secure a valuable 3rd place which guarantees a position in the CL without having to qualify thru a preliminary round. Remember there's still Man City, Aston Villa and Liverpool, all potential suitors for the CL spots. It only gets harder.
It is going to be a potential catastrophe for the club if Cesc is to depart. Although Wenger has tried to built a team around him, it certainly hasn't turned out to to one of champion's quality. I am not sure there is any player I know that could even attempt to replace the club's inspirational captain. It truly it going to be unthinkable if Cesc is to depart. There is no way I feel Wenger could even try to mount a decent challenge next season without him. It's almost too hard even with Cesc, without him would be make it impossible. Worst case, Cesc could spark the biggest exodus yet with Wenger the next possible candidate on his last year of contract.
Last Straw Efforts
I am sure everyone at the club is trying to persuade Cesc to stay. But according to the press and uncertainly portrayed, it seems like Cesc has almost made up his mind. Nothing would happen until after the World Cup but after that fear is there as long as the transfer window is open. But what about Cesc's gratitude to Wenger? I feel this is the only reason he stayed on, his career exploded all because of Wenger's gamble in youth. But has Cesc done enough? I would say there is no limit on how much you have to repay your gratitude to someone but there's also comes to a point you have to think what's best for yourself. It is really unfortunate Wenger has not develop more 'Cesc-quality' youths in his time and it probably is one reason he is thinking about leaving. The odds are against Arsenal, of all teams Barca is the likely destination. The thought of going home to where you first came from, seems like quite an easy decision. Despite this, Cesc has a very strong mind and character and he must be thinking about his decision every day. Whatever the decision is, I am very sure he is smart enough to do the right thing.
As an Arsenal fan, there's absolutely no chance you could let this happen and for the best interest of the club, Cesc just has to stay. I am not sure to what extent Cesc has made up his mind, but Arsenal could really struggle without him. Wenger's leverage over Cesc is diminishing over time and the prospect without Cesc is something no Arsenal fan would want to think about.
~deyao~
