On Cesc

Cesc Fabregas is the captain of Arsenal Football Club. He is one of the best midfielders in the world. As of today, he is still only 21 years of age.

On Monday's Guardian Podcast, Sid Lowe shared a story about Real Madrid's potential targets in the summer. He noted:

"In particular this weekend, Cesc Fabregas, who was very, I think, very non-committal in some things he said in an event in his hometown arranged in Mar over the course of the weekend. He was wearing a white jacket, and he was asked why he was wearing white. And he said, with pretty much with a wink and a nudge-nudge, he said, "well, white really suits me." There's a real feeling that Fabregas may well be paving his way for an exit from Arsenal."

There have been stories this week about how Ramon Calderon had actually called Cesc to try and lure him to Real Madrid. Cesc said himself that the call took place, but he never committed himself to Real Madrid or Calderon's "project". That such a call took place is illegal. Arsene himself stated that he would sue if such a call took place. Whether we act or not, it's irrelevant. We all know Real Madrid's tactics are disgusting, using their newspapers to drum up false stories.

Cesc Fabregas is not the first and he won't be the last player to be coveted by Real Madrid. Even with Patrick Vieira, we had to go through this every year. And that's the truth with Cesc, no matter how many denials he issues, he'll still be linked with Real Madrid every year.

With his swift denials, Cesc has endeared himself to the Arsenal fan base. All the bloggers are overly enamored by him, and there is indeed much to love. His passion for Arsenal comes across very clearly, and he's a gifted footballer.

You will very rarely read anything bad about Cesc Fabregas from bloggers. Even the fact that his performances this year have been slightly subpar has been relatively unnoticed. With a lack of a full pre-season, he has been behind the ball this year. With this injury, however, he may be in prime condition to help us win trophies this year.

Cesc is on his way to becoming an Arsenal legend, a proper one. But let's not make any mistake about it, he is not an Arsenal legend yet.

What he is doing is building a catalogue of things that will recognize him as one when he helps us win important trophies.

Upon leaving UCLA after one year in college basketball and helping the team to one Final Four appearance, Kevin Love talked about the legacy he was leaving behind. That's complete bollocks. There is no legacy to be left behind. He was a great player who was at UCLA and moved on.

For a professional footballer, no doors should be closed, for it is also about making a living as well. But, if Cesc were to leave for Real Madrid now, he would be similar to a player like Nicolas Anelka. I do not hate Anelka, but I do not feel the need to celebrate his time at Arsenal.

Kolo Toure is an Arsenal legend. Jens Lehmann is an Arsenal legend. Cesc is not there yet.

He does not owe Arsene Wenger anything. A talented footballer of Cesc's ilk would have succeeded eventually. That he feels a big obligation towards Arsene tells you more about Wenger than it does about reality.

The Guardian story will not be floated around the Arsenal blog circle, but it is an interesting one. I wouldn't be surprised to see a story on Arsenal.com where Cesc commits to his club once again.

I believe when he does things like that, he's being sincere. But if he's not, the only thing he owes us is two months that can help propel us towards trophies. Football is sometimes about the future, but in this case, it's just about today and the next game.

With Cesc on form, we can win any game.