After eight years at Arsenal, where he developed into one of the finest midfielders in the world, the boy from Catalonia has finally returned home.
After one of the most protracted transfer sagas in recent years, World Cup winner and European Champion Cesc Fabregas rejoined Barcelona in August 2011 for £35m.
It was in North London, however, where Fabregas made his name. While he was still just a teenager the soccer world stopped talking about Cesc Fabregas as one of the best young midfielders in the world and accepted he was simply one of the greatest midfield players on the planet. Taking over the Arsenal number four shirt vacated by Patrick Vieira, Fabregas' cocktail of astounding technique, tigerish tackling and precision passing quickly won over critics who had worried about his lack of bulk in the Gunners' engine room.
Arsenal swooped for Fabregas in September 2003, while he was still a youth player with Catalan giants Barcelona, Arsene Wenger reportedly impressed with a defensive midfielder who scored 30 goals in a season. A month later he scored against Rotherham in the League Cup to become Arsenal's youngest ever goal-scorer at 16 years 177 days. When Vieira was injured Fabregas stepped in to fill the breach, claiming the title of Arsenal's youngest league goal-scorer when he netted against Blackburn.
The records and accolades simply kept coming for Fabregas, his goal in Arsenal's 5-1 Champions League demolition of Rosenborg made him the second youngest scorer in the competition's history and he snared an FA Cup winners' medal when Arsenal defeated Manchester United. He was named in the UEFA Team of the Year for 2006 along with nominations for PFA Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year. In 2007 he was voted Arsenal's Player of the Season and is now installed as the Gunners' captain.
His list of 'youngests' is completed by being the youngest player to represent Spain for 70 years, and in 2006, Spain's youngest ever World Cup player. Winner of a Euro 2008 medal with Spain, Fabregas is one of the most creative midfield players in the game, combining flair, aggression and selfless running. Already brilliant, it seems inevitable he will develop into an all-time great.