In preparation of Spain’s round of 16 tie against Antonio Conte’s Italy, Cesc Fabregas has spoken about Chelsea’s incoming boss and the potential crises Brexit could cause.
Fabregas moved to Arsenal as a 16-year-old and thanks to that it has earned him a ‘home grown’ status in England but due to the new regulations in place due to Brexit, clubs in England can no longer sign a player under the age of 18 (an easy form of business which brings in millions each year). Current Premier League rules state that clubs must have at least 8 homegrown players in their squad, but this may change in the coming years.
It’s a very disappointing decision and I think very negative for many people. Personally, I see it as a mistake. I didn’t expect it, as I went to bed optimistic and woke up to this news.
I think it’s damaging for the Premier League. It’ll be harder to sign players, the salaries will change if the pound gets close to the euro. It’s a decision that will create many complications not just in football, but the daily lives and future of all people.”
Fabregas will look to impress Conte on Monday as they compete for a place in the quarter-finals of this summer’s European championships in France.
I met Conte briefly and he made a very good impression […] He is a great coach, a winner. He told me what he wants from me, what he wants to do at Chelsea and various other things that will remain private.
I really want to start working with him. Now I hope he can get to work at Chelsea as soon as possible. Hopefully from Tuesday he can concentrate on his new job
Fabregas is making it clear that he will not go easy on Italy and make sure Spain knock out the Azzurri so Conte can focus on getting Chelsea back to where they belong.
I sort of knew about Conte before our meeting. I liked his Juve and, obviously had followed the victories, but it wasn’t a team I watched every single week. Now I’ve studied them more carefully and I liked what I saw. He did a great job with the national team too, so I am very confident.
I see he has created a great team unit with Italy. It might be missing your classic individual talents like Alessandro Del Piero or Francesco Totti and lost Claudio Marchisio and Marco Verratti to injury, but it is a very compact group.
That has always been Italy’s strengths and today is it true more than ever. From outside it seems as if Conte chose a definitive group to go all the way and they are all following him.
It is evident that Fabregas is aware of Conte’s tactical philosophy so it will be interesting to see what sort of role the Spaniard will have next season and if he can rediscover his ‘magic hat’.
