It was a big shock for many football fans around the world when Cesc Fabregas decided to join Chelsea who were at the time being managed by Jose Mourinho. A player who has spent his career playing for teams like Arsenal and Barcelona, being a product of the free flowing attacking football played at the two clubs, the defensive approach of Mourinho was not exactly something people thought he would be choosing.
It seemed very odd but within a few months it became evident how and why the Spaniard decided to join Chelsea when the Blues offered some terrific and flowing football in 2014/15 with Fabregas acting as the bass player.
Chelsea, won the Premier League title that season and Fabregas was one of their best players with 3 goals and 18 assists in the Premier League. It all seemed like Cesc will be enjoying some of his best years in England once again this time at Stamford Bridge after the promising displays and the instant success he tasted. Unfortunately, things didn’t go exactly as planned and the problems began to surface from the second year.
During his years at Arsenal, there was something which always bothered the player that was his inability to perform at the level he could post-Christmas. At Chelsea, the symptoms were evident in the first year itself. 2015/16 was an absolute nightmare for the club and for most of the players as they seemed to have lost their touch with the incidents on and off the pitch making matters worse.
Jose Mourinho was sacked after Chelsea dropped down to 16th in the League and ended up eventually in the 10th place. Fabregas failed to influence games and despite scoring 5 and assisting 7 times, the performances failed to inspire the team and the fans with many even calling for him to be sold at the end of the season.
The main problem was the one which has bothered him since the start of his career; his contribution in the defensive phase. Under Arsene Wenger, Fabregas never learned how to defend and while many criticised his manager for the midfielder’s inability to gain the tactical intelligence in the defensive phase due to the style of play or the apparent reluctance to drill the team in their defensive assignments, it must be considered that even Guardiola failed to get the player prepped up to do his duty off the ball in the defensive phase during his time at Barcelona as stated by respected journalist Guillem Balague.
This season, there is a totally different approach at the club and new manager Antonio Conte has laid down the marker very early indeed. The Italian is not one to mess with and is very stubborn and demanding about his player’s responsibilities, especially in the defensive phase. There is absolutely no room for a luxury player under Conte and Fabregas’s inability to carry out his defensive duties off the ball has seen him make just 4 appearances this season under the new manager with three of those coming from the bench.
With the arrival of N’Golo Kanté and a shift in the formation it has become a lot tougher now for Fabregas to even get into the team. The early successes of the wingbacks due to which Eden Hazard seems back in the form and moved to a more central position has so far negotiated the lack of creativity from which the team suffered previously which called out for the inclusion of the former Arsenal player in order to provide the solutions.
Currently, Cesc Fabregas is no more the first choice at Chelsea and the acceptability and prosperity of the players in the new formation has made it more difficult for him to get back into the team. As it stands, we can see the midfielder leave the club soon, something no one could have predicted a few months after he came at Chelsea in 2014.
