Cesc Fàbregas

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

He will play I think. We need him.

[Special Juan 27,419]

He will play I think. We need him.

Of course we need him but we need to be very careful that we do not make a small injury grow off the scale by risking him. Our squad depth is such that it will not harm for one game, if he has to miss the game. Matic and Ramires are more than capable of filling a role together in this game, no problem at all. I'm not for one minute disregarding the quality of Cesc but we must air on the side of caution when it comes to injuries no matter who it is.

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

Of course we need him but we need to be very careful that we do not make a small injury grow off the scale by risking him. Our squad depth is such that it will not harm for one game, if he has to miss the game. Matic and Ramires are more than capable of filling a role together in this game, no problem at all. I'm not for one minute disregarding the quality of Cesc but we must air on the side of caution when it comes to injuries no matter who it is.

He has a light training, so I think it's not that serious though.

[CFC888 219]

I think that the cautious approach taken with Courtois when he had his injury earlier this month shows that if there's a decent replacement there (Cech in Courtois' case, Ramires in Cesc's case), then Jose will not risk any player aggravating an injury.

If there's a risk, Cesc will not play.

[LDN Blue 7,903]

I think that the cautious approach taken with Courtois when he had his injury earlier this month shows that if there's a decent replacement there (Cech in Courtois' case, Ramires in Cesc's case), then Jose will not risk any player aggravating an injury.

If there's a risk, Cesc will not play.

True, but I think with such an important match he'd take the risk.

Ramires would be more effective versus Everton and West Ham anyway.

[CFC888 219]

True, but I think with such an important match he'd take the risk.

Ramires would be more effective versus Everton and West Ham anyway.

Yeah, I suppose we'll never know, but maybe if in Courtois' case it was Man City instead of Newcastle and Swansea then he may have played...And agreed on Ramires.

I think this could go either way with Cesc tomorrow. It's all very subjective, depending on what the exact level of risk is etc. Maybe with Diego out Jose will be more inclined to take a risk on Cesc (if there even is one to be taken). For all we know, Tuesday's substitution could have been mostly precaution, with a particular eye towards tomorrow.

With the cancellation of today's press conference, we'll now have to wait the full 26 hours or so until the team sheet comes in to know the verdict!

[OhForAGreavsie 5,890]

What are the latest on him? We have also Ramires who can cover Cesc absent.

Very unlikely that Jose will allow any genuine fitness news about Cesc to escape from the camp.

[milka 3,344]

Any news , can Fabregas to play tomorrow ?

[iseah100 5,612]

I wouldn't risk playing him tbh. The way i look at it tommorow worst case scenario is, we lose. Gap goes from 5 to 2. Not the end of the world.

We'd still be 2 points in front with City having a more difficult schedule then ours.

I'd rather we miss him now then try and rush him back, make his hamstring worse and miss more games.

What? No. Absolutely no. We need to win, this is the kind of game you risk players for. This is a potential championship decider.

[The Chels 2,502]

What? No. Absolutely no. We need to win, this is the kind of game you risk players for. This is a potential championship decider.

Hmm not sure. I don't think Cesc will be too difficult to replace in tomorrow's game but I can see us really struggling if we're without him in the upcoming games against the likes of Villa, Everton and Burnley.

[Steve 10,227]

Hmm not sure. I don't think Cesc will be too difficult to replace in tomorrow's game but I can see us really struggling if we're without him in the upcoming games against the likes of Villa, Everton and Burnley.

It's more the point of us being able to open up a potential 8 point gap. At this time of the season that is huge.

[The Chels 2,502]

It's more the point of us being able to open up a potential 8 point gap. At this time of the season that is huge.

That's a fair point but personally I don't think playing Ramires instead of Cesc will reduce our chances of winning this game.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

That's a fair point but personally I don't think playing Ramires instead of Cesc will reduce our chances of winning this game.

It'd enhance them, IMO. I love Cesc but you have to field the eleven players most suited to the challenge. You'd swap Luis for Azpilicueta on the basis of needing a more defensive-minded full-back; why not change one of your pivot midfielders when one of them can offer more defensive support and has the legs to support us on the counter-attack? Against a team like City, Cesc will never have the space he needs to weave his magic. Even less so if he isn't 100% fit.

[Steve 10,227]

That's a fair point but personally I don't think playing Ramires instead of Cesc will reduce our chances of winning this game.

Of course not. To be fair to Rambo, his defensive game is stronger then Cescs which will be crucial today!

[Steve 10,227]

It'd enhance them, IMO. I love Cesc but you have to field the eleven players most suited to the challenge. You'd swap Luis for Azpilicueta on the basis of needing a more defensive-minded full-back; why not change one of your pivot midfielders when one of them can offer more defensive support and has the legs to support us on the counter-attack? Against a team like City, Cesc will never have the space he needs to weave his magic. Even less so if he isn't 100% fit.

One moment of magic could be what changes the game though and that would most likely come from Cesc and not another player in the pivot. That said the unexpected can happen in these games.

[Belgiannutt 3,201]

What? No. Absolutely no. We need to win, this is the kind of game you risk players for. This is a potential championship decider.

Disagree with that. After this game there are still 15 PL games or 45 points to win. Is it an important game ? Definitely. Championship decider ? No for me.

It's not worth the risk for me. Fabregas is a very important player for us but in this game, due to the way we're going to play, Ramires can replace Fabregas.( in his own way ofcourse)

Like i said before i'd rather miss Fabregas for 1 game then have him do his hamstring and miss multiple games.

[OneMoSalah 8,766]

It's often easy to shoot your mouth off from the sidelines when you have not the slightest level of responsibility for what is actually going to happen, so here goes...

If Cesc can't play I'd replace him with Charlie Colkett!! Charlie is the second best passer we have in the club, after Cesc. In time perhaps he'll be the best and he's already better defensively than the ex-barca man. Now, if I were really picking the side, I don't suppose I'd be any more likely to Pick Charlie than Jose is but, sitting at the keyboard, it sounds like an idea worth considering. :)

If it was an FA cup game against Wrexham or someone yes maybe use him but when you consider its Man City and also consider Mikel, Ramires, Loftus-Cheek and Ake are definitely ahead of Colkett in the pecking order and in experience, ability and other things it would be crazy.

[OhForAGreavsie 5,890]

If it was an FA cup game against Wrexham or someone yes maybe use him but when you consider its Man City and also consider Mikel, Ramires, Loftus-Cheek and Ake are definitely ahead of Colkett in the pecking order and in experience, ability and other things it would be crazy.

You're right to say it would be crazy of course. You are also right to say that the players you've named are ahead of Charlie in terms of experience and perhaps also in the unspecified things you have in mind. Where I'd offer a different opinion to yours is that, when it comes to ability in the 'Fabregas' role, I put Charlie ahead of all of those.

If push came to shove I wouldn't throw Charlie into this game any more than you would. My post above was really just a long winded way of saying that I think he's a terrific player. I'm certain he'll prove it somewhere. I hope very much that it will be here.