Having started on the bench in all five Premier League games thus far, many are starting to question the role that Cesc Fabregas will play under Antonio Conte.
With the summer transfer window recently coming to an end, it appears that Cesc’s future is at Stamford Bridge, despite alleged interest from a number of Italian clubs, including Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan, as per a report by Steve Stammers in the Mirror.
So at the moment, Fabregas is a Chelsea player. The question is, in what way will he be of impact in a seemingly set-in-stone starting XI? The answer: His creativity.
There is no doubt that Fabregas is a brilliant passer of the ball, one of the best in the world in fact. His vision and eye for a carefully threaded through ball, a perfectly timed cross, or an across field switch of play is what makes him such an asset to any team. A perfect example of this comes in Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Watford, in which Fabregas (after only being substituted on moments before) distributed a pass so accurate in placement and power that it allowed Diego Costa to win a one-on-one with Heurelho Gomez and as such win Chelsea the match.
A perfect example of this comes in Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Watford, in which Fabregas (after only being substituted on moments before) distributed a pass so accurate in placement and power that it allowed Diego Costa to win a one-on-one with Heurelho Gomes and as such win Chelsea the match.
In a recent press conference, Conte hinted that Fabregas’ lack of playing time may be a result of his inability to track back and defend effectively once the ball is lost. The solution to this may be to play Fabregas in a deeper, defensive midfielder role in which he stays further back to compensate for his lack of speed in the transition from attack to defence.
This would allow him to focus on creating chances for his team as opposed to constantly tracking forward and backwards. This would put Fabregas in a position similar to that of Andrea Pirlo during his time at Juventus (in which he too was managed by Conte).
On the contrary, some would argue that the Spaniard would be more effective further up the pitch, in an attacking midfield role where he could roam freely in the opposing half with the likes of Matic and Kante behind him to take on solely defensive positions, accounting for any mistakes he may make.
This would give Fabregas the freedom to put his play-making abilities to good use closer to his attacking teammates knowing that he has support behind him should possession be squandered or a counter-attack put in place.
What do you think? Should Fabregas take on a deeper-lying role (much like Pirlo) or should he be expressing his creativity closer to the oppositions’ goal? Have your say in the poll below.
