Cesc Fabregas handed Arsenal an unlikely glimmer of Champions League hope by firing home a late penalty against Barcelona tonight, but in doing so the Gunners playmaker has put himself on the sidelines again. Early reports and comments from the player himself suggest that he may well have suffered a leg break which would rule him out of the rest of the season.
Given a 40% chance of making the team-sheet, Fabregas was a surprise inclusion in the Arsenal lineup and helped inspire a second-half comeback after Wenger’s side had been outclassed by their opponents for long periods. In the closing stages of that half Fabregas picked up a booking that will see him miss Tuesday’s second leg. But the Spaniard’s penalty at the death earned the Gunners a 2-2 draw after Walcott had replied to a brace from Barca’s Ibrahimovic.
In striking the spot-kick Fabregas suffered an injury which saw him hobble from the pitch. He reappeared but was clearly crippled and simply saw out the final minutes. By the whistle Fabregas struggled to make his way off the pitch.
Out of Tuesday’s tie, Fabregas would have been certain to line up against Wolves at the weekend but Arsene Wenger confirmed in his post-match comments that his skipper may well have suffered further complications with the knee injury and ruled him out for the weekend…
“I believe he will be out now for a while, he is suspended for the second leg anyway too but for Wolves on Saturday he is definitely out”
Fabregas will undergo scans on Monday to assess the full extent of the injury but Wenger’s comments seemed to suggest damage to the bone while Fabregas himself has indicated that he may have suffered a break…
“I fear the worst, which is that I have broken something…I do not think it is going to be good news, but still I hope there will be. When I took the penalty, I was quite strong, but after when I went to get the ball, I could not walk any more. It is the fibula. I think I put my leg between Puyol’s when I was fouled, and kicked it.”
This will now provide the catalyst for Fabregas sales in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) with Frank Lampard the likely beneficiary. Coupled with the speculation surrounding Wayne Rooney’s ankle injury, there now looks likely to be a huge amount of cash flooding into the FPL transfer market as we approach the weekend fixtures.
The Gunners also lost William Gallas and Andrey Arshavin to injuries during the game, while Wenger revealed that Gael Clichy had suffered a twisted ankle. Gallas has apparently sustained a calf injury which, according to Wenger, puts the remainder of his season in doubt. The Gunners boss offered no insight into the extent of Arshavin’s knock which saw him withdrawn on 27 minutes.
It looks likely to be a patched up Arsenal on show at the Emirates on Saturday then, with Nasri looking a certain starter in midfield, while Walcott also looking nailed on for a starting berth after his impressive display as a second-half sub tonight. Priced at 7.8 and 7.7 respectively in the FPL, they now offer interesting short-term differentials in midfield for the weekend.