Ifreke Inyang

It’s a done deal. Arsenal officially posted a confirmation on their website this evening that they had agreed a deal with Barcelona for the sale of Cesc Fabregas. This brings to an end one of the long running transfer battle. It also signals the end of the midfielder’s eight-year spell at Arsenal. Fabregas joined the Club from Barcelona as a 16-year-old in September 2003 and made 303 appearances, scoring 57 goals in all competitions.
Fabregas holds the records for the youngest Arsenal first team player (16 years and 177 days v Rotherham United (h), 28 October 2003) and the youngest Arsenal first team goalscorer (16 years and 212 days v Wolves (h), 2 December, 2003). The Spanish Midfielder was named as Arsenal Captain in November 2008, Fabregas also became a regular in the Spain national team, making 58 appearances to date.
Arsenal coach Arsène Wenger, who denied on Friday that any player will leave the club said: “We have been clear that we didn’t want Cesc to leave and that remains the case. However, we understand Cesc’s desire to move to his home town club and have now accepted an offer from Barcelona. We thank Cesc for his contribution at Arsenal and wish him future success.”
The transfer fee is rumoured to be in the range of £35m, is subject to the completion of formal legal agreements and registration processes, together with Fabregas agreeing personal terms and passing a medical.

The sale of Cesc back to his boyhood club further increases the pressure on Wenger to buy reinforcements, especially as Samir Nasri seems set to join Premier League rivals, Manchester City.

Oluwapelumi