Arsenal are in the midst of yet another summer of discontent at Emirates. The club has clear needs that must be addressed in the defense, manager Arsene Wenger is fighting to keep star midfielders Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas on the roster, and the always rabid fanbase is getting more and more antsy as the club fails to make many significant moves in the transfer window.
Of those issues, the one that has become the most compelling drama is without a doubt the saga of Cesc Fabregas. Barcelona have coveted the 24-year-old midfield maestro from the instant Wenger and the Gunners purchased him from the Catalan club's youth program seven years ago.
Each summer has brought new bids from the Spanish juggernauts, who seem bent on bringing the prodigal prodigy back to the Nou Camp where they feel he belongs. It never works (and it likely won't work this summer), but it's become a sort of rite of passage into the transfer window.
But this summer has been different than years past. Anyone who has watched the proceedings knows that the entire feel of the negotiating process, of the talking back and forth between the two sides has been different.
In fact, it's bordered on the downright strange. Both sides of the argument have taken to launching campaigns that seem to serve little purpose but to irritate and anger the other side, while Cesc is left in the middle of one of the least logical sniping campaigns in recent memory.
This carnival of crazy started simply and harmlessly. Barcelona players Carlos Puyol and Gerard Pique photographed themselves "stealing" a picture of the midfield maestro from Arsenal's training ground, when the Spanish club used it prior to the Champions League final against Manchester United.
We've had the usual posturing back and forth by the two sides, as well: Barcelona claiming that Wenger has taken their youth players by exploiting a loophole in Spanish law (which is partially true), while Wenger roundly denies he's done anything wrong (which is also true).
But then, they went so far as to attempt to withhold part of their transfer fee bid for Fabregas as a sort of penance for legally signing two of Barca's teenage players, a bafflingly stupid move considering Wenger doesn't have to sell Fabregas at all, so playing nice might be a good idea.
Then, there's the emotion-packed statements of the players. Sure, other years we've had players say how much they want Fabregas to come to Spain or stay in North London, but this year, the statements have gotten weird.
Take the statements issued by Xavi Hernandes, the true midfield maestro at Barca. He told the club's website that Fabregas was "suffering" at Emirates and wanted desperately to return to Spain, according to a Mirror Football report.
The Nou Camp star says he ran into his potential new team-mate during the summer and told Barca's official website: "I spoke to Cesc in Ibiza and he said he was suffering because he wanted to come. It's more like, he did everything he could to come and wants to leave Arsenal, although he made it clear that now everything depends on the selling club."
But, the strangeness isn't limited solely to the Spaniards (although Xavi's statement makes little sense, considering Fabregas' steadfast refusal to actually submit a transfer request to the club); Arsenal's teen phenom Jack Wilshere said that Fabregas' manhood depended on him staying at Arsenal, according to Mirror Football.
"Loyalty is a big part of football and it shows if you are a real man or not," said the 19-year-old. "There have been a few players who have shown Arsenal great loyalty and hopefully we will get a few more like that. Then we will see if we can get a trophy or not.
"If you are loyal, it means you are a real man. We have got loyalty at Arsenal and players have shown that in the past - Cesc showed that last year and hopefully a few more players will show it this year.
See what I mean? How are either of those statements helpful or necessary? If Fabregas was as miserable as Xavi claimed, wouldn't he simply request a transfer, a rather common occurrence in the sport at this point?
In fact, Wenger pretty much summed up the impact Xavi's statements had later in the day, according to a report from ESPNSoccernet.
"A mutual respect should stand between the two clubs," the manager said. "Xavi has been very disrespectful to Arsenal football club."
As for Wilshere, does he realize that if Fabregas were "loyal," he'd return to the club he played for as a kid, rather than staying and helping the Gunners end their trophy drought?
The worst part of it all is, in the end, nothing's going to come of it. If the last few weeks have shown us nothing else, it's that neither side is budging from their demands or their offers. Wenger wants market value, Barca don't want to pay that market value, so logically, Fabregas is staying put.
Maybe, if there wasn't so much of the sniping going on, Barca could actually convince Wenger to give them their player back, but given the way things have gone, it's just not going to happen that way.
Thankfully, both Wenger and Barca's manager, Pep Guardiola, haven't given into the madness, but how much longer can they hold out when surrounded by so much crazy?
In other words, buckle in; it's going to be a wild, wild summer of futility in the hunt for the prodigal prodigy.
Molly Sims Monet Mazur Monica Bellucci Monica Keena Monica Potter
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