EPL: Fabregas to face old club as Arsenal visit Stamford Bridge
The last London derby between the two finished 6-0 in Chelsea’s favour
LONDON/MANCHESTER:
All eyes will be on Cesc Fabregas in the Premier League on Sunday when he plays his first game against former club Arsenal in Chelsea colours.
Fabregas spent eight years with Arsenal, including three as captain, but Arsene Wenger opted to not avail the first-refusal option on the Catalonian when Barcelona were looking to offload the 27-year-old. Chelsea pounced on the offer and Fabregas has been an instant hit, registering seven assists in eight games. However, Arsene Wenger insists that he has no regrets, and added that the midfielder preferred a move back to Arsenal. When asked whether Fabregas preferred a return to the Emirates Stadium, Wenger replied, “Certainly, yes”.
Wenger urged Arsenal fans to not boo their former captain when he lines up against them and believes that Fabregas will remember him and Arsenal fondly. "When Fabregas looks back at his career, he will find that Arsenal and myself had a very positive impact on his career," said Wenger. "I have no personal animosity against Fabregas. I wish him well. He is a great player, and a person and player I love. Once he left us, he left us."
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, whose side are six points above fourth-placed Arsenal at the top of the table, says he is not interested in the debate about whether Fabregas would have preferred to return to his old club.
"I don't think that's important,” said the Portuguese. “For me, he is a Chelsea player and he has been phenomenal for us. I couldn't be happier with the moment we decided to bring him to the club."
Chelsea spoiled the party for Wenger last season when they put six past Arsenal to emerge comfortable 6-0 winners on Wenger’s 1,000th game in charge. The Arsenal boss will be looking to make amends but has never defeated Mourinho in 11 previous attempts. The task is made doubly difficult by a string of injuries as Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta, Theo Walcott, Mathieu Debuchy and Olivier Giroud are all out.
On the other hand, Mourinho announced that Blues’ top scorer Diego Costa will start the game, despite problematic hamstrings.
United facing tough fixture
Manchester United prepare for a tough fixture as Everton visit Old Trafford and manager Louis van Gaal believes the Toffees will prove hard to beat, despite playing in the Europa League on Thursday.
United have only won two of their six Premier League matches this season and go into the weekend just two points above Everton. The Merseysiders have also experienced a difficult start, but generally raise their game against the bigger clubs and did a double over United last term.
"I know United lost to them twice last year so they're a difficult opponent,” said Van Gaal. “I hope we can dominate the game, but they want to dominate the game also. They are more capable of playing on the counter than we are, so that's also the difficulty."
Everton manager Roberto Martinez was just as full of praise for his opponents as van Gaal. “We have massive respect for Manchester United and we know they will be a real attacking force,” he said.
All eyes will be on Cesc Fabregas in the Premier League on Sunday when he plays his first game against former club Arsenal in Chelsea colours.
Fabregas spent eight years with Arsenal, including three as captain, but Arsene Wenger opted to not avail the first-refusal option on the Catalonian when Barcelona were looking to offload the 27-year-old. Chelsea pounced on the offer and Fabregas has been an instant hit, registering seven assists in eight games. However, Arsene Wenger insists that he has no regrets, and added that the midfielder preferred a move back to Arsenal. When asked whether Fabregas preferred a return to the Emirates Stadium, Wenger replied, “Certainly, yes”.
Wenger urged Arsenal fans to not boo their former captain when he lines up against them and believes that Fabregas will remember him and Arsenal fondly. "When Fabregas looks back at his career, he will find that Arsenal and myself had a very positive impact on his career," said Wenger. "I have no personal animosity against Fabregas. I wish him well. He is a great player, and a person and player I love. Once he left us, he left us."
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, whose side are six points above fourth-placed Arsenal at the top of the table, says he is not interested in the debate about whether Fabregas would have preferred to return to his old club.
"I don't think that's important,” said the Portuguese. “For me, he is a Chelsea player and he has been phenomenal for us. I couldn't be happier with the moment we decided to bring him to the club."
Chelsea spoiled the party for Wenger last season when they put six past Arsenal to emerge comfortable 6-0 winners on Wenger’s 1,000th game in charge. The Arsenal boss will be looking to make amends but has never defeated Mourinho in 11 previous attempts. The task is made doubly difficult by a string of injuries as Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta, Theo Walcott, Mathieu Debuchy and Olivier Giroud are all out.
On the other hand, Mourinho announced that Blues’ top scorer Diego Costa will start the game, despite problematic hamstrings.
United facing tough fixture
Manchester United prepare for a tough fixture as Everton visit Old Trafford and manager Louis van Gaal believes the Toffees will prove hard to beat, despite playing in the Europa League on Thursday.
United have only won two of their six Premier League matches this season and go into the weekend just two points above Everton. The Merseysiders have also experienced a difficult start, but generally raise their game against the bigger clubs and did a double over United last term.
"I know United lost to them twice last year so they're a difficult opponent,” said Van Gaal. “I hope we can dominate the game, but they want to dominate the game also. They are more capable of playing on the counter than we are, so that's also the difficulty."
Everton manager Roberto Martinez was just as full of praise for his opponents as van Gaal. “We have massive respect for Manchester United and we know they will be a real attacking force,” he said.