MY ACCOUNT
Although he sees a future in coaching, Cesc Fabregas has ruled out immediate plans to retire following his confirmed departure from Monaco over the weekend.
The 35-year-old was only able to make two league appearances this past season, with ankle and hamstring injuries hampering his ability to see sustained time on the pitch.
Effectively without Fabregas, Monaco finished third in Ligue 1 behind Paris Saint-Germain and Marseille, defeating them both and losing only once in the final 12 games of the season after Niko Kovac’s dismissal in December.
Asked on his desire to eventually coach, Fabregas insisted he wants to end his playing career on the right note first.
“First, I still want to play. I don’t want to end like this,” he told the Ligue 1 website. “It’s been too bad a year to end like this. I want to have fun, to finish with good feelings.
“Nothing is decided, I am listening. I am open to everything. Maybe the level of club will have to drop, but there are teams of a lower level in the Champions League. One thing is clear. I’ll go to a club where I’ll play, where they believe in me.”
Fabregas arrived in the principality in January 2019 with the added objective of helping younger players in the squad develop, as Monaco battled relegation under then-boss and former Arsenal team-mate Thierry Henry.
Making 68 appearances over that period, the World Cup winner is content with his time in Monaco overall but seeks a more suitable punctuation mark to his playing career.
“At the time, I signed with one objective, to save the team, which was then 19th with 13 points,” he said. “I took a big risk, because relegation was possible. We can be satisfied to have saved the team’s top-flight status. I’m proud of what I contributed in those six months.
“When I came here, Thierry Henry and [former Monaco vice president] Vadim Vasilyev also asked me to help the youngsters develop. That was an important point.
“Today, I have the feeling that I have earned the respect and sympathy of this young generation. I hope I have helped. We like each other. I will continue to follow them, to talk with them.
“For me, these two and a half years have been positive. On the other hand, the past season was very bad, the worst of my career. By far, I’ve never experienced anything like it.”
