Tracking Down Arsenal's Players on Day of Cesc Fabregas' Debut in 2003
Cesc Fabregas' outstanding start to his Chelsea career has made particularly painful viewing for Arsenal fans.
Many Gunners supporters fondly remember Fabregas' first-team debut for the club in the League Cup against Rotherham. Aged 16 years and 177 days, Fabregas became the youngest player in the club's history.
However, he now seems destined to make history with Chelsea. The lesson is that, in football, things change quickly.
To illustrate that point, we've run through the Arsenal XI from that day and posed the question: Where are they now? Read on to find out.
Graham Stack
1 of 11
Former Ireland U-21 international Graham Stack has played for 10 clubs in a journeyman career. Now 33, he is a player-coach at Conference Premier side Barnet.
Justin Hoyte
2 of 11
Despite making more than 30 first-team appearances for Arsenal, Justin Hoyte never quite made the grade and was sold to Middlesbrough in August 2008.
He then joined Millwall on loan for the 2013/14 season and has since made the deal permanent.
Stathis Tavlaridis
3 of 11
After making seven league appearances for Arsenal, Stathis Tavlaridis moved to French football to join Lille.
He enjoyed a decent spell in Ligue 1, playing regularly for both Lille and Saint-Etienne and winning two international caps in the process.
Tavlaridis is currently playing back in his home country for Atromitos Athens.
Pascal Cygan
4 of 11
The much-maligned Pascal Cygan made 18 league appearances for the Invincibles in 2003/04, earning himself a Premier League medal.
In the summer of 2006, he joined Villarreal, where he played until his eventual retirement in 2009. It remains to be seen whether or not the Frenchman will choose to pursue a career in coaching.
Gael Clichy
5 of 11
Gael Clichy is one of the few players in this XI still playing regular Premier League football.
Clichy went on to become a Premier League champion with both Arsenal and Manchester City, where he resides to this day.
Sylvain Wiltord
6 of 11
After leaving Arsenal in 2007, Sylvain Wiltord went on to play for five different French clubs. He had spells with Lyon, Rennes, Marseille, Metz and Nantes before retiring in 2012.
Wiltord is now an ambassador for the French version of FootGolf.
Cesc Fabregas
7 of 11
Even at 16, it was obvious that Cesc Fabregas was an enormous talent. In his next start after the Rotherham game, he scored his first Gunners goal against Wolves. By the start of the next season, he was becoming a regular fixture in the first team.
Sadly, it wasn't to last. Starved of success and Spanish comforts, he eventually returned to Barcelona. When the homecoming turned sour, he headed back to England and Chelsea.
Edu
8 of 11
After leaving Arsenal in 2005, Edu enjoyed an injury-plagued four years with Valencia before returning to Corinthians in his native Brazil.
The former Brazilian international is now sporting director at Corinthians, and assisted Carlos Quieroz with Iran at the 2014 World Cup.
Jerome Thomas
9 of 11
Jerome Thomas is one of many Arsenal academy products who has gone on to make a career elsewhere in the Premier League.
At present, he is with Neil Warnock's Crystal Palace on a deal until the summer of 2015.
Kanu
10 of 11
After ending his time with Arsenal, Kanu played for West Brom for two years before enjoying a spectacular renaissance under Harry Redknapp at Portsmouth. Kanu became a Portsmouth icon when he scored the winning goal for Pompey in the 2008 FA Cup final.
Kanu is now enjoying his retirement.
Jeremie Aliadiere
11 of 11
Hailed as the new Thierry Henry, Jeremie Aliadiere never quite fulfilled his potential with Arsenal.
Eventually, he found some form with Lorient. However, he could never quite escape the injuries that dogged his career.
In July 2014, Aliadiere surprised many by announcing that he had completed a transfer to Qatari side Umm Salal.
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