Cesc Fabregas Biography
Francesc "Cesc" Fàbregas Soler (Catalan: Fàbregas, Spanish: Fábregas), (born May 4, 1987 in Arenys de Mar, Catalonia, Spain), is a Catalan/Spanish football midfielder, who currently plays for English club Arsenal. Arsenal signed him from FC Barcelona in the middle of 2003, before Fàbregas could sign a professional contract with the La Liga club. He has been touted as one of the best of Spain's next generation of footballers.
Before joining Arsenal, Fàbregas had taken part in the FIFA U-17 World Championship and excelled; winning the Adidas Golden Shoe for top goalscorer and Golden Ball for best player. His Spanish team finished second in the tournament, runners-up to Brazil.Fàbregas made his team debut in a League Cup tie at home to Rotherham United, and in doing so became Arsenal's youngest ever first-team player. He then became the youngest goal scorer in Arsenal's history in a later round of the League Cup, scoring from very close range in a 5-1 victory against Wolves.
It was not until the start of the 2004-05 season that 'Cesc' started making first team appearances. First it was against Manchester United in the Community Shield and then four successive Premier League starts against Everton, Middlesbrough, Blackburn Rovers and Norwich City. Fàbregas impressed many observers in his first four appearances, claiming a goal against Blackburn in a 3-0 victory, and went on to score Arsenal's third goal in a 5-1 Champions League victory against Rosenborg of Norway, making him the second youngest goalscorer in the history of the competition. The Spanish Under-21 international has since signed a new deal with the Gunners that will keep him at the club until 2011. With the departure of Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira, Fàbregas has become a first-team regular in the Arsenal midfield, making a large number of appearances early in the 2005-06 season. He scored the opening goal in the victory over Blackburn Rovers in that season and another one in a substitute appearance against Fulham on March 4, 2006. He was also touted for his performance against Real Madrid in the Santiago Bernabeu (the first leg of the round of 16 in the Champions League), a game which Arsenal won 1-0, and went even a notch higher by scoring the opening goal 3 weeks later against Juventus in the home leg in the quarter-finals of the same competition.
On March 1, 2006, Fàbregas played his first game with the Spanish senior national squad (becoming the youngest player capped for Spain in 80 years), receiving rave reviews for his debut. He even contributed an assist for David Villa's goal, Spain's first in a 3-2 victory over the Ivory Coast.
On March 28, 2006, Fàbregas played in probably his most important fixture yet, the Champions League quarter-final first leg against Juventus, a team dominating the Serie A in Italy. He shone in the match, scoring Arsenal's first goal and setting up Henry for the second. Perhaps most notably, he outplayed Patrick Vieira, the opposition's central midfielder, who is an Arsenal legend and Fàbregas' erstwhile mentor at Highbury. Arsenal continued their fine run of European form with a 1-0 win against Villareal on the 20th of April at Highbury in the Semi-Final first leg, and Fabregas could yet become a European Champion at the tender age of 18. Fàbregas was highly praised by teammates and the press alike, who compared him to the likes of Wayne Rooney and Ronaldinho and even greats like Johnny Haynes and Gérson
With thanks to Wikipedia.org