Cesc Fàbregas

[communicate 2,703]

Last year, a lot of people thought Modric was the best CM in the world,

Kinda hard to define the best cm because there are so many type of cm.

[Chelsea Legend 11 4,062]

ewww why should we employ a pivot or a midfield with Rami and Mikel?

Fàbregas isn't defensively inept to the point he needs players Rami AND Mikel to be behind him. It's either one or the other, but even then, 'no, thanks' from me.

I think Matic + Fàbregas have been working much better now than they were a month ago. I can only expect them to be even better a month from now.

Against the biggest sides, we could bring Ramires and play 4-3-3, which is what we did against City, but surprisingly enough Fàbregas wasn't the most advanced, Ramires was. That's a waste imo... Fàbregas as the most advanced midfielder isn't immediately behind the striker, as were playing with Willian and Hazard. I get it that Rami has pace - much more than Cesc - and being ahead allows him to make runs. But let's be honest... Ramires didn't have one single run during the first half as far as I remember. We were that tad defensively. I don't expect Mourinho to be that defensive playing Arsenal, Liverpool or United away from home. He knows City have two good CBs and an amazing attack. The other teams - even the top ones - are unbalanced and we don't need to be as cautious, although I'm sure we'll be a bit cautious nonetheless when playing away, but not to that extent.

on the second line of your post... haven't we been winning matches by 3, 4 goals anyway? City was the exception, as covered above (despite Costa's unlucky woodwork), but every other single match we played and didn't score more than three goals (Leicester, Bolton, Schalke and Sporting) it was because of bad finishing, not because we didn't break through the opponents defense. There's nothing to be fixed there. Adding both Ramires and Mikel to the team would affect us negatively in the attack and I'm not sure there's such an incredible improvement in the defense. This is going back to last year tactics. If we bring the two of them, as you're suggesting, it means we're wasting an AM to be replaced by a MD. If you want Ramires to improve as defensively, he needs to go forward less often. There's no reason at all for that.

I know Villa and Sporting aren't that great attacking (the latter created some stuff but their finishing was even worse than ours), but we've managed to get too consecutive clean sheets. It's expected for the team to get used to the new tactics and for players to have a better understanding of one another, especially Matic and Fàbregas - as the rest of the team, except Costa, is the same as last season's. That's what I've been saying we need: time. Time is getting the job done and I can see us improve defensively some more, but we won't ever be as good as last season and there's no similarity between us and Liverpool, being an unbalanced team that attacks a lot and but is terrible defending. We aren't even close to being that. The Everton match was a one-time-off thing, that I don't see happening again once the team is ready.

I said in a few posts in August that by the end of September we should be able to see improvements in our defensive system and if we still didn't have at least the slightest progress then it'd be concerning. I've seen more than enough progress in the last few weeks and I think we're going in the right direction, and the right direction has a midfield (pivot, diamond, triangle, whatever you want to name it) with Matic and Fàbregas and three AMs ahead of them. The exception is the tough away game here and there where I see us playing a 4-3-3 with Ramires joining them. Mikel is a sub that won't be used in the majority of the matches and Ramires will mostly be employed as a RW more than a defensive or holding midfielder. There's no need for him to be anything different from that.

Also, even if we don't win matches by 3 or 4 goals every time, what's the matter? We already progressed into a more attractive football many were demanding, now the demand is for us to win by 3 or 4 goals most of our matches. What's next? There's no need to win every single match or most of them by a big scoreline. Seriously, we're very solid in the attack, regardless of how many goals we score, and we're on our way to have stability in the defense, but we'll never be as solid defensively as last season at the same time being as solid offensively as City was last season. In the real world where football is played by human beings, that's not possible. You simply can't have everything like in the video-games... What City accomplished last season with 102 goals scored and 37 conceded is already way too much and that's basically 1 goal conceded by game on average. For an attack that could score 102 times, that's outstanding and very difficult to achieve.

When we play 4-3-3 Ramires is the box to box, Cesc is the deep lying playmaker, Matic is the anchor. Its exactly the positions each of those players excel in. We use it on the counter and when you play on the counter you need pace from deep, no one better in those scenarios than Ramires. Because Ramires didn't get a run has little to do with the formation or him being ineffective, it had to do with City being at Etihad and being a very good team. We had the right formation we just couldn't get out... I didn't think we were extra cautious either what I saw was one of the best teams showing why they are just that. We won't have another game as tough as that one away from home so naturally if the same tactic is employed we should have more success. Having said that we were a goal post and maybe 5mins from winning it.

[Chelsea Legend 11 4,062]

Last year, a lot of people thought Modric was the best CM in the world,

he had a fantastic year last year

[Daniel1980 1,425]

Arsene Wenger believes Cesc Fabregas agreed Chelsea switch 'a long time ago':

“It was not a subject for us. We were in search of more upfront and more defensive opportunities than creative midfielders. We have many. I believe his decision was already made (to go to Chelsea). I personally believe that deal was done a long time ago, early 2014. I didn’t speak to him directly. I was informed that he might go to Chelsea, but when I was informed I thought the deal was already done.

“Fabregas will have a great career because he’s a great player. When he looks back at his career he will find that Arsenal and myself had a very positive impact on his career. Nobody can dispute that. After that, I hope that, for every single person in the world, they have the feeling that we had a positive influence and that he had a great career. That is all you can do.

“I have no personal animosity against Fabregas. I wish him well. He’s a great player and a person and player I love. Once he left us, he left us. We are all professionals and we have to accept that. Everyone respects Cesc here and I want him to get the reception he deserves on Sunday."

That would explain a few things, actually. But it also means either Wenger is lying or Jose and Cesc twisted the facts a little. Or a lot.

[Special Juan 28,122]

Hope he suffocates them with his passing and vision on Sunday.

[bababoom 4,478]

What i love about Cesc is that he isn't afraid to pass it forward when the opposition are defending deep. It may go unnoticed but remember last season? Lampard, Mikel and at times Matic would never risk passing it forward when opposition were parking the bus, instead our attacking players had to come deep to collect the ball. Now Cesc is passing it to players when they're in that pocket of space, it allows Hazard and co to collect the ball on the half turn and do what they do best, run at players.

[lionsden 4,689]

i like how Modric went from being the best cm to insignificant on this board....

I would take modric over cesc anyday. But, I take Cesc over any Cm (in the bpl) minus the city giants.

It's laughable isn't it. It's also worth noting that Modric is significantly better tactically and has the technical ability to fit into any team in the world while fabregas failed to hack it at Barca. He struggled with their posession game as he lacked the ability to retain posession in tight spaces like Xavi,Iniesta and that's one of Modric's key strength. In a nutshell Modric can do everything fabregas can do and then more. Haven't said that, Cesc has better vision and passing range.

[FabHazard 655]

modric is better than fabregas in dribbling(especially beating one man and making a pass) and defending...in everything else cesc is better....

[lionsden 4,689]

For me t

modric is better than fabregas in dribbling(especially beating one man and making a pass) and defending...but everything else cesc is better....

I disagree. Modric is also better at retaining possession (very few players do this better than him), shooting. decision making is equal.

Vision, long range passing and scoring is the only areas where Cesc excel and that's not by much except for scoring.

[kellzfresh 7,229]

modric is better than fabregas in dribbling(especially beating one man and making a pass) and defending...in everything else cesc is better....

This is the accurate explanation of the argument. Now can we stop talking about modric?

[Nike 373]

TBH, I'm not really impressed with Cesc as one of the pivot players nor do I think he is a pivot player. In the City game, Chelsea was completely overruned in the midfield and at a point of time the possession was like 80-20 city.... Neither Cesc nor matic have the speed to catch up in the counter, which I think will be Chelsea's downfall in the champions league, not so much in the epl title, since most cms in this league aren't that good...

Arsenal really would of been a good matchup, but half their team is injured and arteta-jack arent really a great combo. (its ashame that diaby was injury prone, because he would of been one of the best dm/cms in the league).

Also, like Mata, but not as much, Cesc is kind of a nonexistent defender. People go pass him as if he is not even there. When chelsea's faces good teams, I kind of wanna see how Jose /Cesc do in those situations...

[DanishBlue 426]

You just play Ramires with Matic and Cesc when facing good teams. No problem.

[LAB 1,030]

Weird... i thought Cesc proved everything that was left to be proven back in the CIty game.

[communicate 2,703]

TBH, I'm not really impressed with Cesc as one of the pivot players nor do I think he is a pivot player. In the City game, Chelsea was completely overruned in the midfield and at a point of time the possession was like 80-20 city.... Neither Cesc nor matic have the speed to catch up in the counter, which I think will be Chelsea's downfall in the champions league, not so much in the epl title, since most cms in this league aren't that good...

Arsenal really would of been a good matchup, but half their team is injured and arteta-jack arent really a great combo. (its ashame that diaby was injury prone, because he would of been one of the best dm/cms in the league).

Also, like Mata, but not as much, Cesc is kind of a nonexistent defender. People go pass him as if he is not even there. When chelsea's faces good teams, I kind of wanna see how Jose /Cesc do in those situations...

It has nothing of being overrun. You just need to see the way we setup, we drop deep and and don't press. There is no way you will possesion battle playing that system.

[communicate 2,703]

It's laughable isn't it. It's also worth noting that Modric is significantly better tactically and has the technical ability to fit into any team in the world while fabregas failed to hack it at Barca. He struggled with their posession game as he lacked the ability to retain posession in tight spaces like Xavi,Iniesta and that's one of Modric's key strength. In a nutshell Modric can do everything fabregas can do and then more. Haven't said that, Cesc has better vision and passing range.

It all come down to the system. Under Ancelotti 4-3-3 Modric flourish because that is his best position whereas in barcelona fabregas best position is iniesta position.

I personally don't care which one is better because Fabregas has been brilliant for us.