Former Arsenal, Chelsea and Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fàbregas recently announced his retirement from professional football.The World Cup-winning Spaniard has had done incredible things throughout his illustrious career, so Football Fancast has decided to highlight 10 memorable moments as a footballer.How many of these do you remember?
Four assists v Blackburn Rovers
On 4th October, 2009 at the Emirates Stadium, Fàbregas registered four assists in one match whilst scoring a sensational goal of his own.
The La Masia youth product captained the Gunners to a 6-2 victory over Blackburn Rovers and etched himself into Premier League history, becoming only the third player to provide four assists in a single game.
The record still stands today and only seven players have managed to achieve the phenomenal feat.
Assisting the World Cup winner
Does it get much bigger than this? Assisting the winning goal in a World Cup final…
Fàbregas, Spain’s No 10, delicately controlled a loose ball before playing a perfectly weighted pass to Andrés Iniesta, who powered home a half-volley past Netherlands goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg in the 116th minute, sending the Johannesburg crowd into raptures.
It marked the crowning moment during a golden era of Spanish football, after winning the UEFA European Championship in Austria two years prior.
That assist on his Chelsea debut
After completing a £30m move from Barcelona, Fàbregas starred at Turf Moor on his Chelsea debut, laying on two assists and putting the rest of the league on red alert. Jose Mourinho’s men brushed aside Burnley with ease, winning 3-1 and setting an early precedent in a season that led to a Premier League title.
Chelsea’s second goal was simply masterful. Pure football at its finest. Fàbregas cut open the Burnley defence with one pass before the onrushing André Schürrle clinically finished a quite mesmeric move.
Dethroning Vieira v Juventus
The 2006 Champions League quarter-final between Arsenal and Juventus was billed as Patrick Vieira’s homecoming, and a lot was made of the midfield battle between Vieira and the young Fàbregas.
The Spaniard was only 18 at the time, but he was already viewed as the Frenchman’s replacement, who departed the previous summer.
In a classic encounter between the master and the apprentice, Fàbregas gave his predecessor the run-around, and contributed with a goal and an assist on the night, beating the Turin titans 2-0 at Highbury.
Swearing on camera after winning the title
Celebrations were in full flow at The Hawthorns, after Chelsea sealed the title with a 1-0 victory under the stewardship of manager Antonio Conte.
Live in a televised interview, the elated Fàbregas let slip an expletive, to Gary Cahill’s amusement, and in many ways, it displayed his complete authenticity as he described his love for football.
Not quite what the broadcasters would’ve wanted to hear, but it was a refreshing moment for viewers.
Scoring from kick-off v Spurs
Arsenal, having just scored to go 1-0 to the good, stunned their north London rivals from the restart. Fàbregas pounced on a deflected Wilson Palacios pass and drove through the Tottenham midfield before nipping it past Ledley King and finishing off a wonderful solo effort.
It’s easy to forget quite how fast the Spaniard was. His acceleration and quick feet probably aren’t traits he’s remembered for, but certainly, in his earlier career, he had them in abundance.
Reaching 100 assists
On the final day of 2016, Fàbregas became, at that time, the fourth player in Premier League history to register 100 assists. He also became the fastest (293 appearances) player to reach that landmark, beating Ryan Giggs’ previous record of 367 appearances.
The two-time Premier League winner still ranks as the second-highest (111) assist maker in the league’s history, further showing the difficulty of such achievement.
He also notes it as one of his favourite memories in a Chelsea shirt.
Crucial winner v QPR
A late 88th-minute winner at Loftus Road restored Chelsea’s seven-point lead at the top of the table and provided a great deal of relief for Blues fans after nearly dropping points against relegation-threatened QPR.
Fàbregas came up trumps and delivered a crucial side-footed finish past Rob Green, who was beaten by the pace of the shot.
Captain John Terry led buoyant celebrations after the full-time whistle in what felt like a monumental moment in a pressurising title race.
Throwing pizza at Fergie
On 24th October, 2004, Manchester United defeated Arsenal 2-0 at Old Trafford to end their 49-game unbeaten run. Chaos unused in the tunnel afterwards, but the most notable event of the brawl involved a slice of pizza…
17-year-old Fàbregas, who was at the back of the conflict, launched a slice of pizza in frustration but wasn’t aware of where it landed. He later discovered it hit Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson directly in the face, who wasn’t best pleased, to say the least.
The famous match was later dubbed ‘Battle of the Buffet’, or alternatively ‘Pizzagate’.
Broken leg penalty v Barcelona (March 2010)
During a Champions League quarter-final against Barcelona in 2010, Fàbregas scored a penalty to level the scores – breaking his leg in the process…
The Gunners skipper later admitted he was playing off pure adrenaline.
“The adrenaline must have been flowing through me so strongly because I didn’t feel any pain as I smashed the ball past Victor Valdes. But as soon as I ran to collect the ball to take it back to the centre-spot, I was in agony,” Fàbregas said.
He also added he didn’t know whether he sustained the injury the week prior.
“Some people think I may have even broken the leg against Birmingham a week earlier – and, to be honest, I just don’t know. Yes, it’s exactly the same spot but I didn’t go into the game against Barcelona thinking ‘My leg’s broken’.”