Arsenal Best XI From Arsene Wenger's 1,000 Games

By Josh Challies /

CM. Cesc Fabregas

Out of the entire eleven players that are selected here, Cesc Fabregas is the one that will raise the most eyebrows. However, during his eight year stint in North London he became a hero at the club and Arsene Wenger was a key figure in developing the future World Cup winner. He idolised Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva, learning a lot from the way they played and training with them each day. He became the youngest player and goalscorer for Arsenal before he finally started to break into the first team side. He featured towards the end of the club's 49 unbeaten run and threw pizza at Sir Alex Ferguson after the run at ended at Old Trafford- which on it's own earns him the respect of Arsenal fans. After Patrick Vieira left for Juventus, Fabregas become a starting player and took the number 4 shirt. He was a key part of Arsenal's Champions League run in 2006, grabbing assists against Real Madrid and impressing on the big stage. In 2008, he became club captain and held the position until he left for Barcelona in 2011. Fabregas was always going to return to his boyhood club and Arsenal were lucky to get so much out of him before he departed for Spain. There is a high possibility that at some point in the future he will return to Arsenal and he still follows their progress to this day. He's become a Champions League, World Cup and European Championship winner. Without Arsene Wenger, Fabregas would've had far less playing time and would not have developed into the world beater that he is today. The scary thing is, Fabregas' best years are still ahead of him so there is still so much more for the Spaniard to achieve.