Will the Cesc Fabregas Speculation Ever End?

It's another rainy day here in Dublin and another very early blog from me too.

That makes two days in a row and if I keep it up it could become a habit but time will tell.

There's not a lot of Arsenal news to report yet again with the exception of the continued speculation on Cesc's future.

It seems that not a day can go past without another person it's time they had their say and encouraging Cesc to join Barcelona.

The latest person to do it is Spain's goalscoring hero in the  World Cup final, Iniesta, who said that he would love to be reunited with Cesc at Barcelona and that it would increase the quality of their team.

He did say that the prank on Cesc with the Barcelona shirt on Monday night was the work of Puyol and Pique only and that he had nothing to do with it.

Speaking of that prank his father said that nothing was meant by it and Cesc was unwilling in it and he would never do anything wrong towards  Arsenal. He said:

"It was a day of celebration and anything goes. If anyone misinterprets it, they have to see that it was part of a celebration, Cesc has it very clear what Arsenal has been and is for him. He is super grateful to them and it has never crossed his mind to do something wrong towards them.

"Cesc said what he wanted to do (sign for Barca) the day after the end of the league so that Arsenal had time to react. It would have been nasty to say it today, when they are almost on the verge of starting the pre-season. But he always did so thinking about Arsenal. It remains to be seen how everything turns out."

The part in brackets was put in by Sky on their web site as they have decided to fill in the blanks themselves.  Cesc said that he spoke to the boss and that his future is in his hands and the boss said that Cesc is under contract and not for sale so that should be the end of it.

The way I see it Cesc will only leave if he puts in a transfer request and Barcelona then meet any  valuation Arsenal put on him. I would say that realistically he is worth between €50 and €60 million and Barcelona will not pay that amount of money for him.

They may claim that he should be sold for less because he is a product of their youth academy but it was Arsenal who made him into the player he is and if we have to sell him it will only be for full market value.

With five years left on his contract and the boss determined to keep him he will be going nowhere but as Cesc is on holidays for the next few weeks the speculation will continue daily I'm sure.

I had understood that the boss refused to meet Barcelona president Sandra Rossell over the weekend at the World Cup but there are reports that he did in fact meet him.  It was only to tell him that he was disappointed in his continued public pursuit of Cesc as Arsenal had told his predecessor that Cesc was not for sale under any circumstances.

In other news the boss said that  Eduardo remains an Arsenal player and he expects big things from him this season. He said that Eduardo had a terrible injury and went through hell after that but that he has a fantastic work rate and exceptional determination which will be of great use to Arsenal.

The rumours that Besiktas and Aston Villa want to sign him won't go away but it would seem the boss has other plans for him.

We are linked with Stephane Sessegnon of PSG but as he is seen as a replacement for Cesc it's a deal I don't see happening. With the boss now back at the club surely the transfer dealings that need to be done will be done and we can get on with the new season. There are plenty of pictures on the club site of the players back in training and they're worth checking out. That's it for today.

Here's a few goals from Paul Merson.

See You Tomorrow.