Barcelona utilising the Cesc Fabregas tactic to pursue Hector Bellerin

Barcelona are reportedly hoping that Hector Bellerin submits a transfer request in order to pursue through a move to the Camp Nou in the summer.


Former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas had to use a similar tactic in order to pursue a move back to Catalonia.

Fabregas, currently at Chelsea, had been keen on a move to Barcelona in the summer of 2010, but he was still reluctant to place a transfer request under the orders of manager Arsene Wenger. Fabregas eventually bowed to the Gunners demands, and he sacrificed a loyalty payment of around £4m to make his return to Barcelona in 2011.

Fabregas did not make a huge impact during his spell with the Catalan giants, and he eventually returned to the English top flight with Chelsea where he has lifted two Premier League titles in three seasons. Mundo Deportivo suggests that Bellerin will not allowed to leave the Emirates this summer, unless he places a transfer request – similar to what Fabregas did back in the summer of 2011.

Bellerin joined the Gunners from the famous La Masia academy in the same year, and Arsenal managed to waive a buy-back clause on his contract by virtue of Fabregas’ sale to the Catalan giants. The right-back has since graduated through the youth system, and he is now one of the leading stars at Arsenal after having inked a fresh six-and-a-half year deal in November 2016.

While speculation continues to link Bellerin with a return to Camp Nou, the Spaniard appears to have other plans in mind after he admitted that he would be returning for the Gunners’ pre-season tour after having played for the Spain Under-21s, who lost out to Germany in the Euro final on Saturday. Bellerin had a brief spell out of the Gunners team last term through injury, but he managed to retain his old form in the final stages of the campaign.