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Winterburn: If Arsenal get the right offer for Fabregas, he will leave

Written by Renzo on May 5, 2011 – 4:45

Arsenal Interactive - Player RatingsCesc Fabregas

Former Arsenal defender Nigel Winterburn believes the Gunners will sell Cesc Fabregas during the summer transfer window, if the right offer is made.

Writing on his weekly Islington Gazette column, the 47-year explained that no radical changes are needed at Arsenal but there is still a big question mark hanging over the future of the captain, who, according to reports, will again be offered a contract by Spanish giants and Champions League finalists Barcelona.

The Englishman added that if the 23-year old decides to leave it will not be a “disaster” in midfield because even though the Spaniard is a world-class player, “no player has ever been bigger than the club”.

Winterburn concluded by looking at Manchester United and the way they kept winning after selling Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid, saying that a Fabregas-less midfield would balance up things for Arsenal in the middle of the field.

Ahead of this summer’s transfer window, the 47-year old said:

Arsene Wenger does not need to change everything, but one big question mark hangs over Fabregas.

His comments last week, whatever he really said, smacked of frustration and we all know Barcelona will come calling again this summer.

Nobody at the club will admit it, but if they get the right offer I feel there is every chance he will go this time. But if he does, it may not be the disaster everyone thinks it will be.

Fabregas is a world-class player, one of the best, but no player has ever been bigger than the club.

Look at Manchester United, they lost Cristiano Ronaldo who was scoring 50 goals a season, and they carried on. Arsenal are the same, and it may even help balance up that midfield.

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  • John Muhindo says:
    May 5, 2011 at 6:27

    Daniel, agree with you. The future for a club should be flexible for any change made.

    Reply to this comment »
  • mark7402 says:
    May 5, 2011 at 6:40

    People seem to forget how good Cesc is because he hasn’t had the greatest of seasons.
    I know this is an ongoing saga and for that reason he may need to be sold but he is still by far the best player in the Arsenal squad and will be missed.
    It is ok to say sell him and use the money to buy other players but who can replace him?

    I worry for Arsenal when I hear talk of him being sold and Nasri.
    We will never be a big club while we allow deals like this to happen, all that time and investment for nothing other than to sell our best players.

    If we could keep Nasri,Jack,Aaron,Cesc,Song,Walcott and add another tough midfielder and winger imagine the future we have ahead. This is what Wenger realises and why people say we could be world beaters in a few years but unfortunately this summer could again send us back to square 1.

    Reply to this comment »
    • Jamike says:
      May 5, 2011 at 13:45

      I totally agree dat we shuld hold on to our best players, wat use is it if we sell fabregas and den begin 2 build a midfeild from scratch, we’ll be trophy less 4 anoda 4 seasons searching 4 d ryt balance, we need 2 impove on wat we hav other than replacing

      Reply to this comment »
    • Fonz678 says:
      May 5, 2011 at 15:06

      The issue is not whether Cesc is one of the best, which he clearly is. The question is, is it worth it to keep a player in, when his dream seems to be elsewhere. If he wants to stay ofcourse thats a bonus. Keeping a player purely based on contractual terms is probably not helpful for him and the club. This season he has been nothing like what he was in previous seasons.

      Also look at the Man U game where Cesc was absent. Our team had our biggest win of the premier league without him. I think that is proof enough that we can survive without him and still be one of the best teams going around. Ofcourse hes one of a kind, but we have brilliance coming from the likes of Wilshere, Ramsey and Nasri who can play the playmaker role.

      Reply to this comment »
      • the guns says:
        May 6, 2011 at 18:30

        Cesc is good friends with Hleb who will have explained to him what it’s like to play behind Xavi/Iniesta, something he already does in the Spain setup. But will Barca want more Arsenal players? Hleb, Henry, Petit all were less than expected. With Cesc coming off a bad year, his price will have dropped but should still be pretty high. Considering that they have midfielders in La Masia who they rate and would be cheaper, there is a chance the Cesc to Barca window has closed.

        Reply to this comment »
  • WOLF says:
    May 5, 2011 at 7:13

    No doubt that cesc is our best player, without question. But like C. Ronaldo, is it really worth to keep a player who has repeatedly stated his future lies in Spain. I’m not saying for him to fuck off and leave, more like a pat on the back and good luck. Both parties will move on and in the end I think both Arsenal and Cesc are better off separated.

    Reply to this comment »
    • the guns says:
      May 6, 2011 at 18:35

      Do you really think Cesc’s future is in Spain if Barca isn’t in the picture? I can’t see Cesc at Real and Villareal/Sevilla et al are a drop from Arsenal caliber. If Barca were to develop a CAM that seemed to be the heir apparent to Xavi/Iniesta we might start hearing talk about how Cesc wants to retire at Arsenal.

      Reply to this comment »
  • cd says:
    May 5, 2011 at 7:14

    i like how cesc play…i just hope he can continue his style of play anywhere..

    well..many of my girl friend like arsenal becuz of their boys..now no cesc..i can see girl fan go away…good for me ;)

    Reply to this comment »
  • ytwokay says:
    May 5, 2011 at 7:32

    I agree with most of your comments.Let Cesc go for whatever price and re-inforce the defense. Also past their sellby date is Roscisky, Diaby, Denilson,Wilcot (highly overated), Arshavin, Scilllacy,…

    Reply to this comment »
    • Gooner says:
      May 5, 2011 at 8:35

      Sell Walcott? What your nuts mate. Walcott has been on of our top players this season. And he will only get better! I agree with the rest of them. This season has not been Cesc’s best. Remember when he was scoring 15-19 goals from CAM? Dont forget that cesc has not had a proper relaxing summer becuase of the world cup. When he rests again, with no injuries we will see our world class Cesc back. But at which club? Ill say Arsenal! Also Nasri is not going to leave believe me he’s not.

      Reply to this comment »
  • stu says:
    May 5, 2011 at 9:51

    he has lost his passion for arsenal

    he will be at wembley watching his mates play in the champions league final and will then request a transfer

    take the £35 million for him with a player in exchange – like affellay

    and then use that 35 million to get someone like hazard/ashley young or inler

    we dont need to spend on a keeper szczecny is our no.1 and fabianksi will be no.2 sorted

    go and get either cahill/subotic or sakho at the back and then maybe bring in a poacher of a stiker like papa weiss or kevin gamerio or hulk or falco

    Reply to this comment »
    • MikE says:
      May 5, 2011 at 11:27

      good post.

      Reply to this comment »
    • Paddy O'Neill says:
      May 5, 2011 at 14:07

      Why not go back for Eduardo at Shakthar – he should never have been sold

      Reply to this comment »
  • Denilsonblow says:
    May 5, 2011 at 11:08

    arsenal is arsene,arsene is arsenal. in arsenal’s and man utd’s case, the managers are bigger than the club itself. after putting two decades of work to make the club what it is today, no one can deny that these two managers are bigger than the club.

    no signs of barca putting in a 50m bid for fabregas is there? i reckon he will still be here next season, like always and go to barca on a free transfer at the end of his contract.

    Reply to this comment »
  • Gunman says:
    May 5, 2011 at 11:55

    So who shall be get rid off at next summer ?
    B52, Denilson, Diaby … ? or Wenger

    Reply to this comment »
    • Paddy O'Neill says:
      May 5, 2011 at 14:09

      Wenger has to stay but he has to change his attitude to buying players – he shouldn’t always have to buy French players – and listen to his players when they say he should sign someone – RVP begged him to sign Van der Vaart but he wouldn’t

      Reply to this comment »
  • teamarsenal says:
    May 5, 2011 at 15:20

    this is exactly the reason we are labelled a training club. players come into arsenal, the moment they are worldclass, they leave :/ yes, i agree with wenger’s view on not buying worldclass players immediately or it will hamper the youth’s development. But once these youths are the core of our team, how are we going to win trophies if we don’t keep our best players?

    Reply to this comment »
  • nigel says:
    May 5, 2011 at 15:31

    fabregas is a gud playa but not the best at the moment its obviously either rvp or almunia and squilaci lol no i think its rvp because cumin bak from injury u lose ur form but he is 4th i think top scorer in the epl and top 4 us

    Reply to this comment »
  • tommy says:
    May 5, 2011 at 18:16

    This is why Wenger has to come out and make some big signings right after the season is over. The good players need to know the team is trying to win now too besides developing youth and waiting for them to come together and win something in some imaginary future

    Reply to this comment »
  • TheIceManCometh says:
    May 5, 2011 at 18:50

    Why do former Arsenal players make statements like this at the most inconvenient time? The season isn’t over, Cesc has five years left on his contract, he is the captain. Why does Winterburn need to make this statement? It is a dumb comment, and will not help with Cesc-Arsenal situation. I would expect this from a Barca player, not an ex-Gunner. For those who complain about the team not having enough experience, why would you want to sell a world class player and replace him with a youngster with massive potential? Especially when this player is your captain and capable of splitting most defenses. Cesc is an Arsenal player; he will leave for Barcelona someday, just like CR7 left to go to Madrid. The difference between the two is that Cesc contrary to popular belief, Cesc hasn’t been moody or petulant or trying to force a trade. Stupid comments like Winterburn’s and Xavi add more pressure to this situation.

    And Winterburn is wrong about United and CR7. Who won the league after he left? Chelsea. Who won the FA Cup? Chelsea. Who was the most-overhyped player that year, and failed in the World Cup? Wayne Rooney. United, try as they do, have not replaced Ronaldo. They don’t have any world class players in his position (Nani isn’t world class). How many draws has United had this season, allowing Chelsea to close a 15 point gap? And if one player isn’t bigger than a team, how did Wayne Rooney hold United hostage until he received a larger pay raise? You think that happens if CR7 is still on that team? No, Rooney would have been sent packing.

    Reply to this comment »
    • Alex B says:
      May 5, 2011 at 20:26

      Valid.

      Reply to this comment »
  • eve says:
    May 5, 2011 at 20:22

    why is it that people keep saying that “no one is bigger than the club” when all they do is go on about henry, vierra, adams, pires etc these are some of the players that made arsenal what it is today, if it wasnt for that “one special player” arsenal wouldnt exist. Cesc is another one of those “special players” as without him arsenal wouldnt be as high in the table as they are. for example(just one game) when he came on last season against aston villa not fully recovered from a hanstring problem, rescues arsenal with 2 amazing goals. this is just one example of what this man means to arsenal there are hunreds more, i cant write them all. but understand this, we have a great team but it wont be half as great without our inspirational captain. he must not leave arsenal.

    Reply to this comment »
    • Hunter says:
      May 5, 2011 at 20:28

      notice that all of those special players are gone yet Arsenal still exists.

      Reply to this comment »
  • Jay says:
    May 5, 2011 at 21:04

    Give it 7/8 years… and you might just be able to change every ‘Cesc’ in this article to ‘Jon’ and every ‘Fabregas’ to ‘Toral’ now that would be a laugh.

    Reply to this comment »
  • Drew says:
    May 6, 2011 at 1:55

    Fabregas is our best player, but would we have won against MU with him? Maybe, of course, but we showed a certain strength and even balance with Jack and Aaron, and Song slotted into a deeper role than he seems to when Fab plays. If he goes and even if Nasri follows, all we will need is a pacy, skillful winger (HAZARD or maybe Wijnaldum), another CB (Sakho), maybe a direct striker (Gervinho), sell the deadwood x 6 or 7, bring back Bartley, Ryo, JET, et al, make TV and RvP joint captains and we’ll win the league – and make a huge transfer profit.

    Reply to this comment »
  • leon says:
    May 7, 2011 at 14:32

    Sell him and buy a top quality centre back,left winger and 20 goal a season striker.Let go Rosicky ,Almunia ,Bendtner and Denilson and promote Henri Lansbury and Emmanuel Frimpong.

    Reply to this comment »
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