Fabregas Reveals Barcelona Didn’t want to Release Him to Chelsea
Opeyemi Oladunjoye
Cesc Fabregas has revealed that his former club, Fc Barcelona tried to block his move to Chelsea, after he told them he wanted to leave.
The Spain international left Nou Camp in a £28.4m deal last week, just three years after he left Arsenal.
Barcelona released a statement after his transfer back to London, making it obvious it was not a smooth transition, as the club criticised his performances for the La Liga side.
Fabregas has now revealed what went on, after he demanded for a transfer, saying: “I asked Barcelona to find a way for me to leave the club. The president tried to stop the sale, but I already had my mind made up.
“At the time, I spoke with [sporting director] Andoni Zubizarreta and the president [Josep Maria Bartomeu] and I told them I wanted to leave. Honestly, it all went really smoothly. I’m not leaving for any specific reason, if not for a multitude of different things, my own errors and that’s it.
“If I didn’t think that I’d be happy at Chelsea, I would’ve never made this decision. Above all, I want to be happy both professionally and personally. [Chelsea have] great players – young and talented – and building a great team with new signings. I have no doubt I’ll be happy, I lived in London for eight years, I have friends [and] family there.”