Cesc hails young gunners

(Reuters) Cesc attended the launch of the video game “Real Football 2009″ at a London nightclub on Thursday, and spoke with media. Pictures from the event are in the Latest photos section.

Cesc praised the sensational young gunners who romped to a 6-0 victory over Sheffield United Tuesday, supported the need for a transfer fee cap, talked about the gunners recent away form in the north-west, and discussed the season ahead. Full quotes below.

He was also asked if he had any doubts about Arsene Wenger’s Summer transfer policy and replied, “Never. I will never do that. You know him and you know he will always have something that not me, not you, not nobody, will know.”

“You have to trust him and respect him for what he has done in football. All you can do is try to play your football and he will do the rest. He does it his way and he does it very well.”

(From Eurosport) On the young gunners:

“It was sensational,” Fabregas said of Tuesday’s performance while at the launch of Gameloft’s ‘Real Football 2009′. “Everyone played their part and were fantastic.

“There were 56,000 fans at the stadium and they were really entertained.

“It does not surprise me or the rest of the team because we play with them in training every day and we know what they can do.

“Of course you are excited to see them play together in a real game, but you are not surprised by their quality.

“I hope this can turn out to be the greatest generation. There is definitely the potential in this side to do that because we are so young, even the players already playing in the first team – Denilson, [Alex] Song, I am only 21, Gael Clichy looks 30 and he is only 24.

“We all hope we can all keep progressing. With this manager, you know if you play well you will be in the team, so it is up to us to do it.”

(From The Sun) More on the young Gunners:

“I cannot go to sleep as one day or other they will want to play more and more and the manager will want them to play more.

“I will have to be better and better. Wilshere, Ramsey, Merida – they all play in my position. This is great for me. I love competition.

“If the players are so young you can feel your place is too secure. So it’s fantastic to have competition – to wake you up and make you a better player.”

“I was at the game on Tuesday and I was really excited – it was sensational. You can see all the players have ambition, they want to show how good they are.

“It’s not easy in front of 56,000 people when they are playing regular reserve games.

“The manager is the best at giving youngsters a chance. No one comes near to him for that. He’s not scared to play everyone.

“He doesn’t care how old they are. It’s amazing. It’s why we have so many good young players. It’s the club’s policy. I think it is fantastic

“The loyalty is there when you see that the manager trusts you since you were 15, 16.

“When you see all the teams buying big stars, who knows where the stars of the future are going to come from.

“Maybe they don’t all make it at Arsenal but another team will see them play and they get another chance straight away in the Premier League instead of going to the Second Division.”

On Jack Wilshere:

“I do not think Jack needs any advice because his family are taking care of him and his head is in the right place,” added Fabregas.

“If it went the other way and you could see things were not going right, then maybe you could say something to him, but we are not worried about Jack because he has got the qualities and the head to do it.

“Jack is a fantastic guy, and a fantastic footballer – he is so intelligent and he always knows what to do with the ball and that is not easy when you’re 16-years-old”

On Arsene Wenger:

“What’s his secret? Work, dedication, discipline, belief in his own mind and methods.

“Great managers like him and Alex Ferguson are special.

“But for what he does with young players, no one compares with Wenger.

“He never shows nerves before a game, he doesn’t put us under any pressure.

“Even if you’re 14 or 15 he always looks relaxed to you and instils confidence in you.”

On Arsenal’s recent away form:

“I think we have seen a nice difference playing these last two games at Bolton and Blackburn. It was a long trip and we were maybe not at our best. Normally in these games against Bolton and Blackburn we are always struggling. We scored seven goals and only conceded one.”

On the loss at Fulham:

“It was only one game. It was a coincidence that I wasn’t there. I was injured and we lost, but this doesn’t mean anything. With or without me, the team is the same. We continue to play well … we’ve bounced back from the defeat and that’s the most important thing.”

On forging a successful midfield partnership with Denilson:

“We both like to have the ball at our feet, to make passes, to make the team play, and still we are knowing each other by playing regularly and we are doing quite well and we know we both have to defend but I think there is more to come from our midfield.

“I will adapt to whatever partner I have got,” said Fabregas. “I have been playing with Patrick [Vieira], Edu, Gilberto, Flamini and now Denilson and they are all so different.

“We adapt well every time. It is not the same as with Flamini because he was running everywhere and you could see he was more defensive and I could go forward.

“Maybe Denilson and I have the same type of game. So maybe we have to compensate and I have to defend more. But I don’t mind.

“In this last week I have seen parts and aspects of my game that maybe last year or two years ago I could not do and this year I am doing it.”

On the season ahead:

“Last year everyone was talking about Arsenal and we were there for three quarters of the season, but we did not win it so we have to be cautious.”

“We want to be there at the end of the season and the most important thing is to be there on the last game.”

“When you play against Chelsea, Liverpool, Man United – they are top-class teams with top-class players and you have to give 100 per cent.

“At the moment we are happy with what we have seen and what we are doing and we will have to continue fighting until the end and keep playing until the end, there is no way we can go to sleep in this league.

“There are still a lot of players older than me, I feel important to the team, I will try to help them with all my powers.

On wanting to end three years without a trophy:

“We want to stay at the top, of course.

“But we want to be there at the end of the season. Last season we talked about Arsenal winning the league and this year I prefer to wait, not say anything and stay focused until the end of the season.

“I wouldn’t say it would be a disaster if we don’t win anything. People can say ‘They will never win’ but it’s not in my mind. I’ll never think we won’t win anything.

“But sometimes when you feel so good during the game and play the game you enjoy so much, even if you haven’t won anything in the last three seasons, I have felt so good, so free. I enjoy it so much.

“Of course you want to win but when you have this recompense inside that you are playing so well maybe it’s much better than to be in another team that wins trophies but you don’t enjoy it so much.

“I really enjoy playing for the team and in front of my fans, it is a strange feeling that you have when you’re happy but for me happiness is the most important thing in life.”

On staying at Arsenal:

“It was not a hard thing for me to stay, I was really relaxed during the summer because I knew I was going to stay so for me that is not a problem.

“My mentality was there since the day I signed here and I am so happy here that I will never speak about moving if it is going the way it is going. I am happy here and that is it.

“Tell me what is the point of having millions and millions in your bank if then you don’t enjoy playing and you are not happy? For me this is nothing.

“Me I am happy, I love the way we are playing and if I am still here after three seasons without winning anything that means something.

“It is because I love the game, I love the club and the way we play football because I really enjoy it on the field and for me that is the most important thing.”

On staying at Arsenal for his whole career:

“I am 21, I am very young – but if things are going the way they are going now – why not? Massive team, massive fans, massive club, massive players – so why not?”

Cesc also mentioned that he took some time out over the summer to read the Spanish translation of “Fever Pitch,” a 1992 memoir by Nick Hornby about how he survived his parents’ divorce and other crises by becoming an obsessed fan of Arsenal.

Cesc said he found it interesting to read about many of Arsenal’s former players and how coaching tactics and the type of play have changed so drastically since the 1970s.

“It was different. The fields were slower, higher and the ball didn’t go as fast,” he said. “The players were slower, they didn’t defend as much.”

Cesc 2006/2007 season video

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