Whether setting up Andres Iniesta to score the winner in the 2010 World Cup final or netting decisive penalties at Euro 2008 and Euro 2012, Cesc Fabregas has been a key driving force behind Spain’s recent glittering run.
Add his assist for David Silva to score the opening goal in the Euro 2012 final and it is easy to see why the 28-year-old Chelsea midfielder last month became the second-youngest player after Sergio Ramos to reach 100 caps for Spain.
Fabregas should be at the peak of his powers heading into next year’s European Championship finals, when Spain will be chasing an unprecedented third consecutive continental title.
Yet his slump in form for Chelsea this season has been a significant factor in the London club’s disastrous start to their Premier League campaign.
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After helping Chelsea ease to the Premier League title last term with 18 assists in 34 matches, Fabregas has made only one in 12 games this term.
With stiff competition for places in Spain’s midfield he is by no means guaranteed a place in the squad for the tournament in France starting in June.
Speaking on Spanish radio from the Spain training camp outside Madrid late on Tuesday, he said he was personally feeling fine and he was sure he and his Chelsea team mates would soon turn things around.
“Obviously the results are not as favourable as we would want but our level of play is not as bad as the results suggest,” Fabregas told Cadena Cope.
“I am feeling good in the midst of all this but clearly when the results are not there in football everything is negative and you see everything in a bad light
“But I am still confident in this group and this team and I am sure we will be able to improve things.”
Fabregas will be hoping to win his 101st Spain cap when they play a friendly against England in Alicante on Friday before they travel to Brussels to play Belgium in another friendly on Tuesday.
He said he felt singled out for criticism because of his status as one of Chelsea’s top performers last season.
“If you play well you are the first to have the finger pointed at you when things are going badly,” he said.
“When things go well you are the best and when things go wrong you are finished, you are useless.”
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