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The midfielder who Thierry Henry once claimed completely changed Arsene Wenger’s mentality at Arsenal
Arsene Wenger will always go down as one of the greatest managers in Premier League history.
The Frenchman won three league titles at Arsenal, including one Invincible se💜ason at Highbury in 2003/04.
| Games | Wins | Draws | Losses | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenal 2003/04 | 38 | 26 | 12 | 0 |
However, that 2004 league title win would be Arsene Wenger’s�� last as the Gunners still haven’t won the league tꦫo this day.
Arsenal changed after that 🍨Inviꦗncible season, they were no longer a winning machine, and they went on a lengthy trophy drought from 2005 to 2014.
Why did Arsenal struggle so much during that era? Speaking to Sky Sports a few years ago, Thierry Henry pinpointed one potential problem.
Indeed, according to Henry, Arsene Wenger’s mindset changed when Cesc Fabregas came through the ranks.
Fabregas was one of the best midfi🐼elders in the Premier🍸 League during his time in north London, but his mercurial t🌱alent meant that Arsene Wenger had to change the way his team played.
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Cesc Fabregas changed Arsene Wenger’s mentality
Henry spoke about how Fabregas changed Wenger’s mentality and tactical o�♏�utlook.
The former Arsenal captain nဣoted that Wenger changed his system entirely to incorporate🌠 Fabregas, going from a 4-4-2 to a 4-3-3.
4-3-3 was becoming more fashionable around that time in any case, but Henry be🌺lieves that Fab𒁏regas was the man who sparked that change at Arsenal.
“The key for me is the one there🍨, Cesc Fabregas. He changed the mentality of Arsene Wenger,” Henry 💯said.
“We used to play a flat ⛎4-4-2. And because of Cesc, the player he was, he started to think he had to build the team around Cesc 🦹Fabregas and he went into a 4-3-3. He still plays the same way today and believe it or not. I think Cesc Fabregas is the reason he did that.”
“Cesc was the man at the time, and he really did believe that Cesc would be the guy for a long time at Arsenal and ♛building the team around him.”
How Arsenal changed after Cesc Fabregas emerged
Henry says that Arsenal changed after Fabregas came onto the scene, and h🅠e’s not wrong.
Indeedܫ, before Fabregas came through, Wenger used a 4-4-2 system with two really steely midfielders in the team.
Patrick Vieira was the backbone of the side, while he would be partnered by either Gilberto Silva or Emmanuel Petit when Arsenal were at their🐻 best.
However, when Fabregas came through, some of that steel was replaced by more technical brilliance, and that allowed 🌌Arsenal to become something of a softer t💎ouch.
Indeed, Arsenal were ofte🍎n bullied by ultra-physical teams du𒅌ring that era, and that cost the Gunners plenty of opportunities.
After Fabregas emerged, Wenger se⛦emingly started to think about midfield players differently, looking for more technic🐻al profiles rather than physicality.
In the following years, Wenger would sign the likes of Tomas Rosicky, Aaron 🐻Ramsey, Samir Nasri, Santi Cazorla and Mesut Ozil, while Jack Wilshere also came through the academy.
Nowadays, Arsenal seem to hꦦave found a better balance. Martin Odegaard can play that more technical role, while he has protection behind him from the likes of Thomas Partey, Mikel Merino and Declan Rice.
18 years after the event, Declan Rice was labe🎶ll꧃ed as Patrick Vieira’s replacement at Arsenal, and it’s no surprise that since signing a player like Rice, Arsenal have gone closer than ever t🐽o winning the le🔯ague.
Fabregas was a fantastic player, and Wenger was a fantastic manager, but there’s an argument to make that Fabregas’ emergence and the way he change🍌d Wenger’s philosophy did more harm than good at Arsenal.