12 years ago today, on October 28th 2003, Cesc Fabregas made his Arsenal debut aged just 16 years and 177 days, making him Arsenals youngest ever player. It's a record he still holds today.
The following season Fabregas started to break into the first team and by the time he was 18 he was a regular starter for the Gunners, playing a major role in their Champions League campaign in 2006.
He dominated the midfield against Juventus, who were spearheaded by the man he replaced, Patrick Vieira. His performances were so impressive that Wenger likened him to French great Michel Platini in 2007.
His vision is comparable to Platini, and that is a compliment. He is at the start of his career and we know that Platini has finished his. Cesc has it all in front of him, but he has a vision and he will develop still more.
In 2008 Fabregas was given the armband at the Emirates following trouble with William Gallas, he went on to galvanise Arsenals stuttering season, propelling them to a top four finish.
By the time he left for Barcelona, Fabregas was easily one of the best players in the world and his spell with the Catalan giants was (debatably) a successful one. He had also become a mainstay in a Spain team which was dominating world football and he provided the assist for Andrés Iniesta's match winner in the 2010 World Cup final.
Chelsea fans had every reason to be excited by the time Fabregas was signed in 2014. They had signed a proven, world class, footballer who'd won everything possible to win in the game.
He met fans' expectations in the opening half of last season, racking up an incredible amount of assists and becoming the fulcrum of the team, both he and Chelsea looked bulletproof.
These were his figures in December of last year.
As soon as 2014 turned to 2015 something went wrong for the Spaniard, his form dipped significantly. However, it went somewhat unnoticed as Chelsea continued to dominate the Premier League.
He registered just three more assists in the second half of the season and many started to believe he was jaded from his impressive start.
With no major tournament this summer, Fabregas had the opportunity to rest up and have a solid pre-season. Chelsea fans would have hoped that the early season Fabregas from 2014/15 would be returning, but what they have got instead was an even worse version than the one who finished the season so poorly.
He's managed just one assist so far and created only 19 chances. As a counterpoint with someone who has his fair share of criticism, Mesut Ozil has chalked up 7 assists, a goal and created 42 chances in comparison.
Since 2015 began, Fabregas has been struggling badly. He's only created 53 chances since the start of the new year which is the ninth highest in the Premier League. That may be a sound statistic for a mid table player but this is a World Cup and Champions League winner.
Blues fans are starting to turn on the Spaniard as they look for scapegoats to their terrible season so far.
@missingpeople I would like to report a missing person, Name: Cesc Fabregas. Age 28. Nationality: Spanish. Last seen February 2015
— Chris Francis (@Chri3youtwit) October 3, 2015
We need the old cesc back.. pic.twitter.com/bKSWRgl0a9 — RAKSHITH (@theblues_knight) October 3, 2015
Cesc Fabregas is starting to look as knackered & aged as a prime minister does before & after their term. #Chelsea
— Shaun Lappin (@Shaunlappin) October 24, 2015
Chelsea are playing so well with 10 men. Guess they're used to it with Fabregas in the team. — MK (@Fraudiesta) October 24, 2015
Cesc Fabregas WhatsApp status. Last seen in 2014.
— Läsh. (@MF__Jones) October 24, 2015
Some are questioning whether Mourinho is using him correctly but this cannot be the case as he was so scintillating for most of last season.
Has Fabregas well and truly 'lost it'? He's been playing at the highest level from such a young age and he's now in his late 20's. Perhaps he's just burnt out. Wayne Rooney is another example of someone who's been playing constantly since he was a teenager and he's struggling for form too. It's hard to comprehend the toll that takes on your body.
Maybe he's suffering from a lack of motivation, it can be argued that his early performances for Chelsea were as a result of him wanting to prove Luis Enrique wrong for selling him, Once he did that, maybe he took his foot off the gas.
Again that seems unlikely. He just doesn't strike you as the kind of character to rest on his laurels. But whatever the reason, Fabregas has been a passenger this season. Arsenal fans may not admit it, but that's a horrible thing to say of a player who had the world at his feet as a 16 year old.
