With reports emerging from London about Arsenal slapping a price 80 Million pound, the Cesc Fabregas transfer saga has truly heaten up. Suddenly the great enthusiasm that surrounded the Barca Management regarding Fabregas has made way to caution. The recent comments made by sporting director, Txiki Begiristain is a testimony of the sudden realisation that this one is not going to be easy. Begiristain recently said "What counts here is Arsenal and what their decision is, because Cesc is a very important player for them. It is great news that he wants to come. Sometimes what players want does not happen ,they have contracts in force. I think that at some stage Cesc will come to FC Barcelona. I don't know when but I have the feeling that he is a Barcelona player and he would love to play here. But we have to respect Arsenal and the contract he has there." Now that's a sudden change in attitude as it was reported that the Barcelona Hierarchy recently gave a "Now or Never" ultimatum to Cesc Fabregas. Now there is a realisation that Arsenal will do whatever needed to hold on to their captain and it's essential not to irritate the Premier League club.
It's been quite a drama since the day Barca won the La Liga title. Laporta, who is at the end of his tenure highlighted the need to complete the tranfer deals before the Show piece event in South Africa. A very wise decision, when you consider that after the World Cup the market will suddenly be inflated. Barca management highlighted Cesc and Villa as their primary target this summer. The David Villa deal was sure to happen as Valencia was looking to get out of the their financial mess. But from the begining Cesc Fabregas deal looked like a fantasy. It was difficult to understand why Arsenal will let go off their captain, who has four years left in his contract. Then came the twist, there were reports emerging rapidly from Spain and England about Cesc Fabregas expressing his wish to rejoin Barcelona. That changed the whole scenario, now suddenly it became something like "The Kid who got away, wants to come home". Barcelona suddenly sensed the oppurtunity to grab the player and made an offer which is reported to be around 35 Million Euros. With Arsenal putting a price tag of 80 Million pound, the deal looks like dead for the moment.
A price tag of 80 Million would be an attempt by Arsenal to ward off the Barca interest in the player. According to market experts, Arsenal may finally agree to a price around 50 Million. Now that raises some serious questions. Number one, Why should you pay that much for a player who may not even start in the present FC Barcelona setup. I am not saying that Fabregas, if signed will struggle to find first team action. He most probably will walk into the midfield and Iniesta will be pushed further up. The real question is "Is This necessary?" The last time we did something similiar was when we bought Henry, who naturally would have occupied Ronaldinho's position. The thinking at that time was either of Ronnie or Henry can play the centre striker role. How badly we were proven wrong. Henry settled into the team only after the exit of Ronaldinho explains the whole situation. The chances of Fabregas upsetting Iniesta or Xavi is very less, but at 50 Million could be a needless buy. The second and the more important question would be whether we are losing once again the bigger picture in the whole drama. As the squad stands at the moment, what we need the most is a player who can cover up for the front lef position. The position soon to be vacated by Henry. Pedro has done well in that position but we need a genuine match winner at that position. Pedro is too inexperienced. A David Silva, Mata or a Robben could be the ideal solution. If in the end we failed to land Cesc and get distarcted from filling the void, we could be in for some trouble next season.
Anyway one good thing that has happened is that we have entered the market much earlier this season, this will give us more time even if some deals fall flat. But you have to question whether it is a good thing to create so much fuss around a player, who could be crucial to Spain's ambition at the World Cup. The last thing Ve=icente del Bosque wants is an unsettled Cesc Fabregas in the team, who may find it difficult to concentrate on the pitch due to the actions off it. It's a good thing that the Barca Management is striving har to conclude the deal as early as possible. But it's easier said than none. Arsenal has demonstarted very clearly that they want to let go off their Captain. And this has all the recipes to become a prolonged saga. One could hope that this don't go the same way like last season's attempt to sign Villa. In the end Villa had a tough time winning back the loyalty of the Valencia fans. The last thing Arsenal would want is an unsettled Captain leading their side, so it's better for Arsenal to come out in the open and clarify what's going on. Meanwhile just gera up for more entertainment with this saga as the new twist is round the corner.