{"id":329518,"date":"2018-12-31T10:58:59","date_gmt":"2018-12-31T15:58:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lwosonfootball.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/?p=329518"},"modified":"2018-12-31T12:24:36","modified_gmt":"2018-12-31T17:24:36","slug":"can-cesc-fabregas-milans-midfield-woes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2018\/12\/31\/can-cesc-fabregas-milans-midfield-woes\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Cesc F\u00e0bregas Solve Milan&#8217;s Midfield Woes?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>It&#8217;s no secret that <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonfootball.com\/clubs\/ac-milan\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">AC Milan<\/a>\u00a0are in desperate need of midfield help. Devastating injuries to starters <a href=\"https:\/\/fbref.com\/en\/players\/5710a281\/?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Lucas Biglia<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/fbref.com\/en\/players\/d995ed27\/?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Giacomo Bonaventura<\/a> have drained all the team&#8217;s creativity from the middle of the pitch. As of now, the only healthy and notable centre midfielders are Ti\u00e9mou\u00e9 Bakayoko and <a href=\"https:\/\/fbref.com\/en\/players\/05e19d6a\/?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Franck Kessi\u00e9<\/a>. Although talented in their own right, Bakayoko and Kessi\u00e9 are more defensive than creative. With this being said, a cut-rate deal for <a href=\"https:\/\/fbref.com\/en\/players\/33508c78\/?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cesc F\u00e0bregas<\/a> may be Milan&#8217;s solution.<\/p>\n<h1>Can Cesc F\u00e0bregas Solve Milan&#8217;s Midfield Woes?<\/h1>\n<h2>What Could F\u00e0bregas Bring?<\/h2>\n<p>First of all, F\u00e0bregas has declined from his <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonfootball.com\/category\/premier-league\/arsenal\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Arsenal<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonfootball.com\/category\/la-liga\/barcelona\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Barcelona<\/a> days. There is no going around that fact, but he brings a dimension of play missing from Milan&#8217;s midfield. He has also lost his place in <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonfootball.com\/category\/premier-league\/chelsea\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Chelsea&#8217;s<\/a> midfield pecking order. This comes to no surprise, however, as Chelsea&#8217;s midfield boasts talent such as Jorginho, <a href=\"https:\/\/fbref.com\/en\/players\/b9fbae28\/?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">N&#8217;Golo Kant\u00e9<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/fbref.com\/en\/players\/79c0821a\/?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Mateo Kovacic<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>F\u00e0bregas brings loads of experience along with the talent of creating chance after chance and envisioning openings before they happen. Always patient on the ball, F\u00e0bregas will never hesitate to whip in a deep ball or cross to his liking. Bakayoko and Kessi\u00e9, simply put, lack the vision and skill to supply forwards like <a href=\"https:\/\/fbref.com\/en\/players\/8a08491a\/?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Gonzalo Higua\u00edn<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/fbref.com\/en\/players\/a4fe8cda\/?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Patrick Cutrone<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The Chelsea man would also relieve fellow Spaniard Suso of his creative duties. Milan far too often rely heavily on Suso to create something out of nothing. This has been even more evident this season due to Hakan \u00c7alhanoglu&#8217;s dip in form. This makes Milan&#8217;s attack too predictable, as opposing defenders typically now a cross is coming from the right side if Suso opts not to cut in and shoot. Linking up two successful veterans like F\u00e0bregas and Higua\u00edn in a league where older players often see success simply makes sense.<\/p>\n<h1>How Would F\u00e0bregas Fit?<\/h1>\n<p>Purchasing a natural midfielder like F\u00e0bregas would allow manager Gennaro Gattuso to return to his preferred 4-3-3 formation over his makeshift 4-4-2 created due to the ongoing <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonfootball.com\/2018\/11\/10\/ac-milans-injury-crisis\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">injury crisis<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Bakayoko would certainly start as the defensive midfielder due to his ongoing form and impressive performances. Slotting in F\u00e0bregas next to him would be wise as it would allow the Spaniard to focus more on creating chances and less on tracking back. Kessi\u00e9 would most likely fill in the last midfield spot as last season he saw himself play to the side of Biglia and not strictly in the centre of the pitch. Incoming arrival from Flamengo Lucas Paqueta, however, may challenge for a spot a lot earlier than many believe. Paqueta, already a household name in Brazil has the potential to become world-class. This is evident due to Milan having to beat out teams like Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain for his signature. F\u00e0bregas, however, due to his proven talent and experience would certainly secure a starting position.<\/p>\n<h1>The Last Word<\/h1>\n<p>Make no mistake, a Milan deal for F\u00e0bregas is nowhere near completion. As of now, it is just a circulating rumour. Due to him seemingly being frozen out of Maurizio Sarri&#8217;s squad, the media has reported that F\u00e0bregas and Chelsea might<a href=\"https:\/\/www.calciomercato.com\/en\/news\/from-spain-fabregas-very-close-to-terminating-chelsea-contract-78361\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> mutually agree<\/a> to terminate his contract. This would be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goal.com\/en\/news\/we-cannot-do-what-we-want-milans-gattuso-casts-doubt-over\/bn21nkmjq7mm1pjhveaxgqkwa\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ideal<\/a> for Milan as they currently have Financial Fair Play regulations creeping up behind them and they already coughed up 35 million Euros for Paqueta.<\/p>\n<p>Milan currently have a challenger, however, as Fenerbahce have begun to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.football-italia.net\/132678\/fenerbahce-push-milan-fabregas\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">express heavy interest<\/a> in the midfielder. The Turkish side may be prepared to purchase F\u00e0bregas outright from Chelsea, not having to wait for his contract to be terminated.<\/p>\n<p>With their biggest goal being a return to the Champions League, expect more and more rumours surrounding Milan this next month.<\/p>\n<p>Main Photo\u00a0<a id=\"974us_i5TLFKXC8NNSNf9A\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.co.uk\/detail\/1074425220\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'974us_i5TLFKXC8NNSNf9A',sig:'RZDrzw5uE3-Xb158GUmO269NjIY4gk3Fv29SvEbqi98=',w:'594px',h:'424px',items:'1074425220',caption: true ,tld:'co.uk',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It&#8217;s no secret that AC Milan\u00a0are in desperate need of midfield help. Devastating injuries to starters Lucas Biglia and Giacomo Bonaventura have drained all the team&#8217;s creativity from the middle of the pitch. As of now, the only healthy and notable centre midfielders are Ti\u00e9mou\u00e9 Bakayoko and Franck Kessi\u00e9. Although talented in their own right, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2248,"featured_media":330018,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11,1363],"tags":[49,276,46,1967,93,40,48,136],"class_list":["post-329518","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chelsea","category-ac-milan","tag-ac-milan","tag-cesc-fabregas","tag-chelsea","tag-european-football","tag-fenerbahce","tag-premier-league","tag-serie-a","tag-world-football"],"modified_by":"Nat Goodlad, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329518","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2248"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=329518"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329518\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/330018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=329518"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=329518"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=329518"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}