Arsène Wenger has called upon the Arsenal home crowd to remember the outstanding service that Cesc Fàbregas once gave to them and afford him a respectful reception when he returns to the Emirates Stadium for the first time with Chelsea on Sunday.
The Arsenal manager, however, admitted Fàbregas’s departure for Barcelona in the summer of 2011 remained one of his big regrets, and he maintained the situation felt “uncomfortable” to him.
Fàbregas pushed through an acrimonious move to the Catalan club – after making his Arsenal debut at 16 and excelling for them over eight seasons – and the manner of the parting undoubtedly soured his legacy in the eyes of some members of staff at Arsenal.
It was one reason why Wenger did not move decisively to re-sign Fàbregas when he became available last summer, although there are others, with the key one, according to Wenger, being he did not need another creative midfielder. Chelsea paid £30m to take Fàbregas to Stamford Bridge and he has been central to their push for the Premier League title.
There remains an element of mystery over why Wenger and Fàbregas were not reunited, which the Frenchman fuelled when he was asked whether it had been his decision to reject the chance to re-sign the player.
“We will have to discuss that one day,” Wenger said. “With all the terms … it’s not as clean as that. I cannot speak to you about that now because that will not help us to win the game on Sunday.”
Wenger preferred to focus on Sunday, when he will attempt to beat the Chelsea manager, José Mourinho, for the first time – at the 13th attempt.
“The regret I have is that Cesc wanted to leave here,” Wenger said. “This club and myself had a very positive influence on Cesc’s life, so I would be a bit uncomfortable to have to justify today why he is not here. I believe I would rather it was the other way around.
“Does Cesc regret leaving? I don’t know. You should ask him that question. I want every player to be respected and Cesc Fàbregas, when he comes to the Emirates on Sunday, to be respected like he deserves.”
Fàbregas has faded over the second half of the season, having started at Chelsea in a blaze of eye-catching numbers and performances. “It is difficult,” Wenger said. “To be completely honest, I think he is a great player but, like every player, he has his good periods and those that go a bit less well. It is difficult for every player who has played in every game since the start of the season to be absolutely at the top of his game for 50 games.”
Wenger reported that Per Mertesacker, who injured an ankle in Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final win over Reading, was 50-50 to feature against Chelsea; Gabriel Paulista stands by to replace him. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (groin) and Mikel Arteta (ankle) are still out.
Arsenal trail Chelsea, the league leaders, by 10 points. “Mathematically, if we win, it [the title] will be possible but Chelsea have their future and the championship in their hands,” Wenger said. “What we can do is get closer to them and we have an opportunity to do that at home. We want to take it.”