BARCELONA – Cesc Fabregas’ transfer to Barcelona is complete after the Spainish midfielder signed a five-year contract Monday.
The Spanish club said Fabregas passed an external medical revision and then an ‘exhaustive’ fitness test with club doctors before signing his new deal that brings the 24-year-old back to his boyhood club after eight seasons with Arsenal.Terms of Fabregas’ contract were not announced but Spanish media reported the price tag of the transfer at about 40 million Euros (US$57 million).’All the tests undertaken have turned out satisfactory,’ said team doctor Ricard Pruna, who did not speculate on whether Fabregas would be available to play immediately.Fabregas is expected to train with his new teammates later.Fabregas, who returns to the club that nurtured him before he joined Arsenal in 2003, will be presented to fans at the Camp Nou stadium before speaking for the first time about his move. Fans gathered in the afternoon sun carrying signs that read ‘Cesc welcome home’ as they waited for him to don the navy and crimson jersey as a Barcelona player for the first time since 2003.Fabregas announced his desire to move back to Barcelona after the 2009-10 season, but Arsenal refused to sell its most valuable player and Fabregas agreed to stay for one more year. A similar storyline played out this offseason with the Arsenal captain again stating his desire to return to Spain, and Arsenal trying to fend off Barcelona’s interest.Fabregas sat out most of Arsenal’s preseason campaign, with the club citing an injury worry, and he was not selected for the team’s Premier League opener on Saturday – a 0-0 draw at Newcastle.Fabregas scored 57 goals in 303 appearances and won one league title and an FA Cup with Arsenal. He has played 58 times for the Spanish national team and was part of the squads that won the 2010 World Cup and 2008 European Championship.Fabregas could make his debut Wednesday at the Camp Nou as the Spanish champions play Real Madrid in the return leg of the Spanish Supercup after a 2-2 draw in Sunday’s first leg.- Nampa-AP
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