Reports: Cesc Fabregas' Monaco move looks imminent after tearful Stamford Bridge farewell
What's the story?
Chelsea's Cesc Fabregas is on his way out of England and Thierry Henry's AS Monaco looks like the most likely destination for the Spaniard, according to reports from Goal and SkySports.
After captaining the Blues in their FA Cup third round fixture against Nottingham Forest, Fabregas was seen applauding the Stamford Bridge faithful present at the stadium. He even became tearful as he was subbed off.
Speculation about Fabregas leaving the London club has been rife throughout the first half of the season, with the former Arsenal man getting limited playtime under new manager Maurizio Sarri.
In case you didn't know...
Fabregas has entered the final six months of his Chelsea contract and is free to negotiate terms with other clubs. Thierry Henry and Fabregas spent four seasons playing together under Arsene Wenger at Arsenal.
Fabregas has only started once and played 175 minutes of Premier League football under Sarri this season.
The heart of the matter
According to Nizaar Kinsella of Goal.com, AC Milan, with whom Fabregas was linked for quite some time, are still interested in the La Masia graduate, but they don't have the funds to have a player of his class on their payroll.
Thus, Monaco have been given a boost in their pursuit of the world-class player, who might be willing to move to the Ligue 1 club due to lack of guaranteed playtime at his current club.
Today's fixture in the FA Cup is believed to be his final appearance at the Stamford Bridge as a Chelsea player, considering he was given the captain's armband for the match and also because he got emotional while leaving the pitch with five minutes to go.
L'Equipe had earlier reported that Henry has played a big role in convincing the player to join the club, which is in dire need of some solid reinforcements.
Rumor Rating - 7/10
Fabregas looks set to leave Chelsea this transfer window after months of speculation. And Monaco's approach for the midfielder has been reported by some very reliable sources like Nizaar Kinsella, Bilel Ghazi and Vincent Duluc.
Also, Matt Law recently posted an update about the Blues' interest in Nicolo Barella, a player termed as a Fabregas replacement by some. It looks like Sarri knows that he won't be able to hold on to the talented midfielder any longer, and is already on the lookout for replacements.
Here is a video of Fabregas' memorable moments in recent times:
What's next?
Although Fabregas looks set for a move to France, every party involved is remaining tight-lipped at the moment. So we'll have to wait for the official announcement, which may be very soon.