Look up post or post- in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Post or POST may refer to:

Mail[link]

• Mail, the postal system, especially in Commonwealth of Nations countries
• Hotel post, a service offered by remote Swiss hotels for the carriage of mail to the nearest official post office
• Local post, a mail service that operates only within a limited geographical area, typically a city or a single transportation route
• Parcel post, a service for sending parcels through the post
• Prague pneumatic post, the world's last preserved municipal pneumatic post system
• Wine post, also known as New Zealand Wine Post, is a privately owned postal service in New Zealand
• Post, an entry in a blog or internet forum – see posting style
• Anonymous post, an entry in a blog or internet forum without a screen name or more commonly by using a non-identifiable pseudonym
• Sponsored post, a post to any community-driven notification-oriented website which is explicitly sponsored as an advertisement

Newspapers and magazines[link]

• New York Post, USA
• The Washington Post, USA
• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, USA
• The Christian Post, USA
• The Jerusalem Post, Israel
• The Sunday Post, Scotland
• National Post, Canada
• The Sunday Business Post, Ireland
• Australasian Post, Australia
• Post Magazine, British magazine first published in 1840
• Post Newspapers, Australia
• South China Morning Post, Hong Kong
• The Kathmandu Post, Nepal

Music[link]

• Post (Björk album), the third studio album by Icelandic singer-songwriter and musician Björk, released in June 1995
• Post (Paul Kelly album), the first solo album by Australian singer-songwriter rock musician, Paul Kelly
• Post Records, record label

Organisations and companies[link]

• Post Foods, brand name
• Post University, a university in Connecticut USA
• Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, UK

Places[link]

• Post, Texas, the county seat of Garza County, US
• Post, Oregon, a community at the geographic center of the state of Oregon, US
• Post Lake, Wisconsin, an unincorporated community, US

Sports[link]

• Posting system, transfer system for baseball players moving from a Japanese baseball team to a Major League Baseball team
• Post (route), route run by a receiver in American Football

Technology[link]

• Structural post: Column (architecture)
• Power-on self-test, start-up routines on electronic devices, typically on computers
• POST (HTTP), an HTTP request method
• Pillar (car), structural element of a car body
• .post the internet top-level domain

Other[link]

• Post, a way of riding a horse trot
• Military base, an assigned station or a guard post
• Post (surname)
• Part-of-speech tagging, the process of marking up a word in a text (corpus) as corresponding to a particular part of speech, based on both its definition, as well as its context—i.e. relationship with adjacent and related words in a phrase, sentence, or paragraph
• POST Certification (Peace Officer Standards and Training), a program nationwide for Law enforcement officers

See also[link]

• Pole (disambiguation)
• Posting (laundering process), or postadh, a traditional Scottish method of washing clothes
• Hitching post (disambiguation)
• All pages beginning with "Post"
• All pages with titles containing "Post"

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

For the American football safety, see Brian Bonner (safety). For the American football linebacker, see Brian Bonner (linebacker).

Brian Bonner (born September 22, 1959 in Boston, Massachusetts), is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series.

Bonner began his racing career on two wheels, racing motorcycles from 1975 to 1985. He attended a racing school at Lime Rock Park in 1986 and quickly saw success in Formula Ford competition. He then drove in the Firestone Firehawk Series and Barber Saab Pro Series.^[1] In 1990 and 1991 Bonner drove full-time in the IMSA GT Championship for Essex Racing in 1990 and Tom Milner Racing in 1991.^[2] He also made 3 starts in 1989 and 1990 in the American Racing Series.^[3]

In 1992 he moved to CART Champ Car and completed his rookie test at Sebring Raceway. He qualified for his first CART race, the 1992 Indianapolis 500 driving for Dale Coyne Racing in the 26th position but was knocked out by a crash after 97 laps. His best CART finish came two weeks later and was 10th position at the 1992 Detroit Grand Prix driving for Foyt Enterprises. He made one other start in 1992 with Dale Coyne Racing (Mid-Ohio). he made his final start in 1993 with Hemelgarn Racing at the Cleveland Grand Prix after failing to qualify for the 1993 Indianapolis 500.

References[link]

This biographical article related to United States auto racing is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. It may have been edited by a contributor who has a close connection with its subject. Tagged since November 2009. Its neutrality is disputed. Tagged since July 2009.

Sunday Adelaja is the founder and senior pastor of the Embassy of God, an evangelical-charismatic megachurch^[2] in Kiev, Ukraine. He immigrated to the USSR and Belarus as a scholarship student from Nigeria in 1986 to study journalism. After graduation and the breakdown of the USSR, he started several churches that he later handed over to other pastors before he moved from Belarus to Ukraine in December 1993.

Adelaja has faced criticism from local groups, other Ukrainian Evangelical churches, the Eastern Orthodox Church and from foreign-based Christian countercult organisations as well as accusations of involvement in fraud.

Adelaja's movement is also present in Armenia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Moldova, Poland, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, the United States and Uzbekistan.

Biography[link]

Sunday Sunkanmi Adelaja was born in the village of Idomila Ijebu-Ode, Nigeria. He was raised by his grandmother and became Christian in March 1986 just before graduating from high school. After graduation Adelaja left Nigeria because he received a scholarship to study journalism at the Belarusian State University in Minsk, Byelorussian SSR. He claims he was threatened there by authorities for having a picture of Jesus in his house, but nevertheless, he began Christian activities in Belarus during his studies.^[3] He married and took a job in Kiev, where he eventually founded and became pastor of the Embassy of God church, initially with only a handful of fellow African students.^[4] Today he plays an active role in the political and social life of Ukraine and was an influencing factor the Ukrainian Orange Revolution. Sunday speaks, preaches and teaches fluently in Russian.

By age 33, he had built the largest charismatic church in Europe, having started with only a few followers in a small apartment in downtown Kiev in 1994. Since then his church has grown to more than 700 churches in over 45 countries and has been instrumental in starting over 300 rehab centers for drug addicts and alcoholics, situated all over Ukraine and Russia.^[5]

Pastor Sunday was honored to be on a first page article of the Wall Street Journal in July 21, 2006.^[6]

Pastor Sunday was honored to open the U.S. Senate in prayer April 23, 2007.^[7]

Pastor Sunday was honored to speak twice at the United Nations in August 23, 2007.^[8]

Church[link]

Adelaja's church, the Embassy of God, claims to have 25,000 members in Kiev alone. Adelaja's church is also expanding abroad.^[9] 1,000 to 2,000 people are fed daily at the church's "Stephania" soup kitchens in Kiev. The church also has a program helping homeless people acquiring skills, thus helping them back to a normal life and work. According to the church 2,000 children have been helped off the street, and have been returned to their families. Furthermore the church runs a 24 hour hot-line, named "Trust line",^[10] for people to call in need. The church also works with addicted people and has a program helping addicted people to be set free from various addictions. The main organization is called "Love Rehabilitation Center".^[11] According to the church, more than 5000 drug and alcohol addicted people have been set free from their addiction through their work.^[12][13]

The New York Times made the following statement about Adelaja: "Could there be a more unlikely success story in the former Soviet Union than the Rev. Sunday Adelaja, an immigrant from Nigeria who has developed an ardent — and enormous — following across Ukraine?"^[14]

There are many educational institutions connected to the church, and among them the following are more known: the Joshua Missionary Bible Institute in Ukraine,^[15] the Center of Restoration of Personality and Transformation of the Society in Ukraine,^[16] the History Makers Bible School in the USA,^[17] the UK,^[18] Germany,^[19] France,^[20] and the Institute for National Transformation in Nigeria.^[21]

The Mayor of Kiev, Leonid Chernovetsky, is a prominent member of the church.

Role in Orange Revolution[link]

The church has been credited with playing an active role in the popular gatherings than eventually led to the Orange Revolution. Sunday Adelaja has, however, denounced in Ukrainian media his implied initiation of the Orange Revolution. The mayor of Kiev, Leonid Chernovetsky, is a member of the Embassy of God, but he is in opposition to the principal actors of the Orange Revolution, including Premier Yulia Tymoshenko.^[22] President Viktor Yushchenko has provided Adelaja with a certificate of thankfulness for his support in the Orange Revolution.^[23] During the protests, the church erected a tent chapel on Independence Square and offered shelter to thousands of people who came to Kiev.^[24]

Awards and honors[link]

In October 2010, Sunday Adelaja was one of the foreigners in Ukraine who were awarded The Most Influential Expats 2010 by the Kyiv Post newspaper.^[25]

In May 2009, Sunday Adelaja became The Face of Kiev 2009. The annual competition was conducted by the magazine Afisha and Adelaja took the first place with more than 1/3 of the votes, beating to the second position, the most popular actor in Ukraine, Bohdan Stupka; to the third place, the Heavy weight boxer Vitali Klitschko; to the fourth place, one of the richest Entrepreneurs in Ukraine, Viktor Pinchuk; and to the fifth place the Mayor of Kiev, Leonid Chernovetskyi.^[26]

At the Azusa Street Revival Festival on Saturday April 25, 2009, Sunday Adelaja received the first International William J. Seymour Award. This award is given to ministers who exhibit the characteristics of William J. Seymour. A statement from the award committee said: “This year we will award an international and national recipient: The international recipient will be Pastor Sunday Adelaja who is a Nigerian-born leader with an apostolic gift for the 21st century. In his mid-thirties Pastor Sunday has already proven to be one of the world’s most dynamic communicators and church planters and is regarded as the most successful pastor in Europe with over 25,000 members as well as daughter and satellite churches in over 35 countries worldwide”.^[27][28]

In March 2008 the Archbishop Benson Idahosa Prize for Missionary Exploits was presented to Rev. Sunday Adelaja in recognition of his missionary exploits and social engagement in Kiev, Ukraine and around the world.

In March 2007 Sunday Adelaja became an Honorable Member of the Euroasian International Chamber of Commerce.

In May 2004 The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Holland Mission gave a Special Appreciation to Pastor Sunday Adelaja for being part of what God is using His church to do in reaching out to the people of the Netherlands.

Accusations of fraud[link]

Adelaja was accused in November 2008 of being involved in the dealings of King’s Capital, a financial group led by a former member of his congregation. The company promises as much as 60 percent returns on investments and drew many of its investors from the church. Later several former church members went to the authorities saying they were unable to recover the money they invested, which left many of them bankrupt. Police later arrested one of King’s Capital leaders, Aleksandr Bandurchenko, on suspicion of fraud.^[29]

On February 5, 2009 a criminal case against Sunday Adelaja was filed on suspicion of fraud. Investigators say they have testimony indicating that Adelaja was involved in the financial machinations allegedly committed by the King’s Capital financial group. Kiev’s Mayor Chernovetsky, himself a church member, had earlier said that Adelaja was not involved in the financial scheme at King’s Capital.^[30]

In September 2009, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine admitted that they have exhausted their possibilities in the criminal case against Sunday Adelaja. Since the Ministry of Internal Affairs has still delayed and refused to take the case to the court the Embassy of God church and Sunday Adelaja has initiated a lawsuit against the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Police of Ukraine for unlawful accusation and libel. The judge has asked the Ministry of Internal Affairs to show their evidence for their accusation of fraud, but after five court hearings they have still not provided any evidence to support their accusation.^[31]

On October 12, 2009 Kiev investigators questioned Adelaja in connection with the fraud accusation. During a press conference On October 14, 2009 the Minister of Internal Affairs Yuriy Lutsenko said that the pre-trial proceedings had found out that from October 2006 to May 2008, Adelaja and others embezzled property of people most of whom were the believers of the Embassy of God church. The total amount of the damage due to these actions is over UAH 1.5 million in accordance with evidence provided by several witnesses, according to the Minister.^[32]

Adelaja considers the police's decision to investigate him for involvement in the financial group's machinations as implementation of a political order. And has said that the cause of the financial problems at the King's Capital financial group was the economic crisis rather than a deliberate fraud.^[32]

As of April 2011 the case has not been taken to court.

Criticism from evangelical church leaders[link]

On 28 December 2008, nine leaders of evangelical churches in Ukraine signed a statement in which they, among other things, dissociate themselves from Sunday Adelaja and his activity. They accuse him of trying to create a cult of personality, and accuse him of using methods and activity based on self-advertisement, exaggeration of personal merits, teaching the doctrine of prosperity and the sin of love of money, and his practice of cursing the church members and parishioners who disagree with his opinion.^[33][34]

Besides Embassy of God Church there are two other megachurches in Ukraine; Victory Church and Hillsong Church, and their pastors, Henry Madava and Evgenij Kasevich have not signed the statement.^[2][33]

Political views[link]

Adelaja supports Ukrainian nationalism, according to him Ukraine can only become independent through a nationalist mood. He considers it unfortunately that patriotism does not apply to all Ukrainians. “Only through the nationalistic mood can the Ukrainian nation become independent at all. If Ukrainians do not become more nationalistic, I am afraid that this country may come back under the Russian or Polish or Hungarian or some other yoke”.^[35]

Adelaja thinks racism is not typical of the Ukrainian society. “I think it is a more Russian phenomenon, which came here. But Russia also sees how bad racism is for a country’s reputation”.^[35]

Adelaja was a strong supporter of the Orange Revolution. “Twelve years ago we were freed from Communism. Though we have had a different government with different uniforms since, the same corrupt people have remained in power. Now, Ukraine has its first opportunity to choose our own free way of life.” He stated about the then candidate in and later winner of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election Viktor Yushchenko: “He is a committed believer who is serious about his faith, and is influenced by God and the Bible”.^[36] However, during the last president elections Adelaja decided and called all affiliated churches to vote for Victor Yanukovich, the opponent of the "Orange" leaders (Tymoshenko and Yushchenko).^{[citation needed]}

Bibliography[link]

• The Kingdom Driven Life
• Money won’t make you Rich^[37]
• ChurchShift^[38]
• ChurchShift Guide^[38]
• Kingdom of Love
• The Dream Team
• How to keep your focus
• Time is Life
• Life is Predictable
• Calling, purpose and attaining goals
• Fulfill your calling
• Growing wealthy without tears
• The restorers of the earth
• The happiness of a man
• Olorunwa – The roads of life
• Living sexually free^[39]
• Those who are Christ’s
• Life in God’s Kingdom
• How to hear the voice of God
• Heavenly atmosphere in the family
• The wilderness of your life
• Mighty warrior
• Accessing divine wisdom
• Spearheading a national transformation
• Victorious despite the devil
• The road to greatness^[39]
• Successful marriage takes work^[39]
• The treasures of the Kingdom
• Understanding God^[39]
• The whole world is waiting for you
• You and your pastor^[39]
• The Jesus you never knew^[39]
• Kings and judges of the earth^[39]
• Life and death in the power of the tongue^[39]
• The man God will use^[39]
• Pastoring without tears^[39]

and others.

See also[link]

• Embassy of God

References[link]

External links[link]

• Personal website No. 1 of Pastor Sunday Adelaja
• Personal website No. 2 of Pastor Sunday Adelaja
• The Official Facebook page of Pastor Sunday Adelaja
• The Official Blog of Pastor Sunday Adelaja
• Adelaja Watch, website critical about Adelaja

Sébastien Léger is a French house DJ and producer. Currently ranked 138 on The DJ List,^[1] his singles "Hit Girl", "Hypnotized" and "Aqualight" have become hit dance singles played in clubs across Europe.

Beginning 2010 in fine form, his label, Mistakes, has further strengthened his role as one of Europe’s leading proponents of contemporary underground techno. The antithesis of the showman that is fellow countryman, David Guetta, Leger mines a wholly different vein, updating the rich musical histories of Detroit and Chicago with a quiet determination and no-nonsense approach.

His much lauded ability to fashion intricate rhythms from cold and lifeless circuitry stems from a classical background, but formal musical training is but one half of the story; having served his ‘apprenticeship’ in clubs around France in his teens.

The 1990s saw the first explosion of French dance music culture, and as a young producer and DJ, he saw his heroes such as Laurent Garnier, Daft Punk, and Etienne De Crecy, begin to carve out a distinctive new wave of electronic music. He began producing at the end of that decade, and though surrounded with French filter house, he looked across the Atlantic for his own inspiration, with Underground Resistance, Derrick May, and Juan Atkins being a few prime examples.

Heritage techno might be an influence, but it’s a mere reference point for Sebastien’s productions and the output from his label, as he’s always made technology dance to his very own, distinct tune. Leger is thoroughly 21st century in his delivery and execution, packing a punch that has seen Mistakes become a best-seller on Beatport, and an imprint that is defining a new sound away from the soulless beats and clicks of minimal.

Tracks such as ‘Binola’, ‘The White Island’, and ‘The Rhythm’, lie at the funkier end of the techno scale, throbbing and coursing with a proudly European sensibility; but regional influences aside, the reception to Leger’s recorded output ensures his popularity remains truly global.

Over 50 Eps for labels including Black Jack, Ovum, Intec, SCI+TEC, and beyond, make for an enviable discography, but as the cliché goes, you’re as good as your last record, and Leger has always kept the bar high despite a prolific release schedule.

His remix for Cirez D’s ‘On/Off’ on Mouseville, shows that he doesn’t just keep his best ideas for himself. Léger has consistently pushed his production boundaries and adapted himself to the sounds and technology around him. Despite his more cerebral sound of late, he brings to proceedings a dancefloor sensibility that is all about the ‘funk’, injected with a heart and soul attitude that means his music is never clinical.

In addition to his studio exploits, a busy DJ diary means gigs across the planet, from Germany to Japan, the UK to Ibiza, and the US to Asia. It’s a schedule that means Sebastien remains at the forefront of modern EDM, taking his music to wherever dance culture shines brightest.

Discography[link]

Singles and albums[link]

Exclusive tracks[link]

Remixes[link]

External links[link]

• Official Site
• Interview / FAQ with Sébastien Léger
• Ministry of Sound Radio
• Sébastien Léger Essential Mix

References[link]

This article about a French musician is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Cesc Fàbregas

Fàbregas in 2011
Personal information
Full name	Francesc Fàbregas Soler[1]
Date of birth	(1987-05-04) 4 May 1987 (age 25)[1]
Place of birth	Arenys de Mar, Spain
Height	1.79 m (5 ft 10 1⁄2 in)[1]
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Barcelona
Number	4
Youth career
1995–1997	Mataró
1997–2003	Barcelona
2003	Arsenal
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2003–2011	Arsenal	212	(35)
2011–	Barcelona	28	(9)
National team‡
2002–2003	Spain U16	8	(0)
2003–2004	Spain U17	14	(7)
2005	Spain U20	5	(0)
2004–2005	Spain U21	12	(8)
2006–	Spain	63	(8)
2004–	Catalonia	2	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 00:01 6 May 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 01:22, 2 March 2012 (UTC)

Francesc "Cesc" Fàbregas Soler (Catalan pronunciation: [ˈsɛsk ˈfaβɾəɣəs]; born 4 May 1987) is a Spanish footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club FC Barcelona.

Fàbregas started his career as a trainee with Barcelona but was signed by Premier League side Arsenal in September 2003 at the age of 16. Following injuries to key midfielders in the 2004–05 season, he went on to establish himself as Arsenal's starting central midfielder, playmaker, and captain. He broke several of the club's records in the process, earning a reputation as one of the best young players for his position. In 2011, he returned to Barcelona for an initial fee of £29m (€34m) with a further £4m (€5m) in variables.

In international football, the Spaniard's national career began when he represented the Under-17 side at the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship in Finland. As a result of his club performances, he was called up to the senior squad in 2006. He has played in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2008 and 2010 FIFA World Cup, helping Spain to become eventual winners in the two most recent tournaments.

Early years[link]

Fàbregas was born in Arenys de Mar, Barcelona, Catalonia^[2][3] to Francesc Fàbregas, Sr., who runs a property company, and Núria Soler, the owner of a pastry company. Fàbregas has supported FC Barcelona since childhood and went to his first match when he was nine months old with his grandfather.^[4] He began his club football career with CE Mataró, before being signed for Barcelona's La Masia youth academy aged 10 in 1997.^[5] His first coach, Señor Blai, reportedly did not select Fàbregas for matches against Barcelona in an attempt to hide him from their scouts.^[6] This tactic, however, was unable to withstand Barcelona for long, and Mataró gave in and allowed Fàbregas to train with Barcelona one day per week. Eventually Fàbregas joined Barcelona's academy full time. His initial training was as a defensive midfielder playing alongside notable names such as Gerard Piqué and Lionel Messi. Although he was a prolific scorer, sometimes scoring even more than 30 goals in a season for the club's youth teams, he did not manage to play a first team game at the Camp Nou.^[7] During his time at Barcelona's youth academy, Fàbregas idolised Barcelona's then-captain and number four Josep Guardiola, who would later give Fàbregas his shirt as consolation when Fàbregas' parents divorced.^[8]

Club career[link]

Arsenal[link]

Adapting to England[link]

Fàbregas (left) in a game against Sheffield United in 2006

Sensing that he would have limited opportunities at Barcelona,^[9] Fàbregas joined Arsenal in their Academy,^[10] signing for the London club on 11 September 2003.^[3] Initially, he found life difficult in England's capital but soon struck a friendship with Spanish-speaking team-mate Philippe Senderos, who helped him settle down.^[11] As a 16-year-old, Fàbregas did not contemplate breaking into the first team immediately but looked up to senior players like Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva, while concentrating on training and learning the English language.^[11] He nevertheless made his debut for Arsenal not long after, on 23 October 2003, in a League Cup tie at home to Rotherham United. In doing so he became Arsenal's youngest ever first team player, aged 16 years and 177 days.^[12] He then became the youngest goalscorer in Arsenal's history in a later round of the League Cup, scoring in a 5–1 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers.^[13] Although Arsenal went on to win the league unbeaten in the 2003–04 season,^[14] Fàbregas was not awarded a winner's medal because he did not play a single league game.^[15]

It was not until the start of the 2004–05 season that the Spaniard started making first team appearances in matches outside the League Cup. His first match of the season was against Manchester United in the FA Community Shield. Following an injury to Vieira, Fàbregas stepped in and made four consecutive Premier League starts. He was praised for his performances in those games, even claiming a goal against Blackburn Rovers in a 3–0 victory, and becoming Arsenal's youngest ever goalscorer in a league game.^[16][17] With further injuries to Edu and Gilberto Silva, he received more playing time in all competitions.^[2][9] He signed his first professional contract with Arsenal in September 2004,^[10] which committed his long-term future to the club.^[18] In the 2004–05 UEFA Champions League, he became the second-youngest goalscorer in the competition's history after scoring the third goal against Rosenborg in a 5–1 win.^[19] He concluded his season by winning his first honours with Arsenal when he was in the starting eleven that defeated Manchester United on penalties in the 2005 FA Cup Final.^[20]

Making the starting eleven[link]

After the departure of Vieira to Juventus, Fàbregas was given the Frenchman's number 4 shirt and featured regularly in the Arsenal central midfield alongside Gilberto Silva. He made 49 appearances in all competitions during the 2005–06 season.^[15] Despite his young age, his performances came under greater scrutiny due to his increased involvement in the first team. Further, as Fàbregas possessed a smaller frame and played with less aggression than Vieira, there were initially doubts over his ability to fill in the void left by the Frenchman.^[21] Nevertheless, Fàbregas asserted his own style of play and impressed pundits in the Champions League against Real Madrid and Juventus.^[22][23][24] In the latter, he scored Arsenal's first goal and set up Thierry Henry for the second,^[22] at the same time proving that he could compete against tough, hard-tackling midfielders like Vieira.^[24] He then played in the Final against his former club Barcelona, but Arsenal were defeated 2–1,^[25] completing a trophyless 2005–06 campaign for Arsenal.

Fàbregas celebrates a goal with his Arsenal team-mates

Fàbregas' increase in exposure drew transfer speculation during the summer; Real Madrid expressed a desire to sign the Spaniard despite his long-term contract with Arsenal,^[26] but Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger stated that Arsenal would not listen to any offers.^[27] In September 2006, with six years left on his deal, Arsenal offered a new five-year deal (with an option to extend by a further three years) to the midfielder, which he signed on 19 October 2006.^[28] While the contract was unusually long, Fàbregas cited Arsenal's playing style and Wenger as reasons for his long-term commitment to the club.^[29][30]

Fàbregas was appointed captain of the team during the 2008–09 season

The 2006–07 season was a learning experience for the young Arsenal squad and Fàbregas. The club again failed to secure any major honours and were defeated by city rivals Chelsea in the League Cup Final.^[31] However, Fàbregas emerged as one of the key creative players for the team, playing in every single league game.^[15][32] He kickstarted Arsenal's 2006–07 UEFA Champions League campaign when he scored a brace in a 3–0 win over Dinamo Zagreb in a qualifier match.^[33] In the Premier League, he notched up 13 assists, which was the second-highest total in the league.^[15][32] He ended the season with several individual honours, including the Golden Boy award, presented by the Italian paper TuttoSport, based on a poll of leading writers across Europe.^[34] He was also named in the 2006 UEFA Team of the Year,^[35] and named FA Premier League Player of the Month for January 2007.^[36] Additionally, he was nominated for both PFA Players' Player of the Year and PFA Young Player of the Year, although both awards went to Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo.^[37] In June 2007, he was named Arsenal's Player of the Season, taking in 60% of the votes.^[38]

The 2007–08 season began with much uncertainty for Arsenal. First, David Dein, the club's vice-chairman, left amidst allegations of internal strife, followed by the departure of the club's all-time top goalscorer and captain, Thierry Henry, who signed for Barcelona. There was also speculation over Wenger's future with the club.^[39] Fàbregas knew that he would become the most important player for Arsenal, but stated he was ready for the challenge.^[40] He started the season well, chalking up goals and assists,^[15] and website soccernet attributed the early success of Arsenal to the young Spaniard.^[41] His start to the season also earned him the O₂ Player of the Month award from Arsenal fans for August, September and October,^[42] as well as the Premier League Player of the Month for September.^[43] With Arsenal leading the league table until March, Fàbregas was equally instrumental in the club's 2007–08 Champions League campaign; in the return leg against Milan, the midfielder scored late in the game to send Arsenal into the quarter-finals.^[44] Though Arsenal ended the season trophyless,^[45] Fàbregas amassed several personal awards. On 11 April 2008, Fàbregas was nominated for the PFA Player of the Year and PFA Young Player of the Year awards for the second year running;^[46] he was later crowned the winner of the latter, and named in the PFA Team of the Year. He was also named the 2007–08 Arsenal.com Player of the Season.^[47]

Captaincy[link]

Fàbregas as captain during the 2008–09 Champions League semi-final

On 24 November 2008, 14 league games into the 2008–09 season, Fàbregas was named as the successor to William Gallas as club captain.^[48][49] However, just as Arsenal were getting back into the title race after a poor start to the season, the Spaniard was ruled out for four months after sustaining a knee injury against Liverpool.^[50] The Gunners eventually finished the season without any silverware, coming in fourth in the league and being knocked out at the semi-finals of the 2008–09 Champions League campaign.^[51][52] In tandem with Arsenal's policy to groom its young players, the team that Fàbregas led into the new season consisted mostly of the same young nucleus as before, with the likes of Nicklas Bendtner, Gaël Clichy, Abou Diaby, Denílson, Samir Nasri, Alexandre Song, and Theo Walcott in tow.

Fàbregas in a game against rivals Tottenham in November 2010

In the opening league game of 2009–10 season, Fàbregas scored a brace and managed two assists in Arsenal's 6–1 away win against Everton.^[53] Arsenal went on to secure qualification for the 2009–10 Champions League campaign by beating Celtic over two legs, but their early momentum to the season was disrupted by consecutive league game losses to Manchester United and Manchester City. The team bounced back strongly after this setback, and with Fàbregas being prolific in scoring and setting up his teammates, it went unbeaten in the next 13 games. Despite suffering four league losses even before mid-season approached, Arsenal managed to lead the league standings after 22 games. On 31 March 2010, in the Champions League first leg of the quarter-final against Barcelona, Fàbregas suffered a leg fracture before scoring the equalising goal in the game which ended 2–2.^[54] Arsenal, who were four points behind league leaders Manchester United, were deprived of their captain for the remaining six league games of the season;^[54] they were subsequently eliminated by Barcelona in the Champions League, and fell out of the league title race. Fàbregas was later named to the PFA Team of the Year.^[55]

Fàbregas tries to subdue an argument between future teammate Busquets and Arsenal's Van Persie.

Before the start of the 2010–11 season, there was once again intense media speculation about the Spaniard's future, and in June 2010, a €35 million bid from Barcelona was rejected.^[56][57][58] The 2010–11 season turned out to be an extremely competitive one in the Premier League; even though Arsenal had lost five games before mid-season, they were jostling for pole position with Manchester United and Manchester City.^[59] Going into late February, Arsenal were still in contention for the quadruple, but within a span of two weeks they lost in the League Cup final, were eliminated by Barcelona in the Round of 16 of the Champions League, and defeated in the FA Cup quarter-final.^[60] Although Fàbregas did not play in the League Cup Final, it was his misplaced backheel pass during the second leg of the Champions League game against Barcelona that allowed them to level the aggregate score. Arsenal remained in contention for the league title until a series of draws in the final third of the season caused them to fall too far behind league leaders Manchester United; they ended the season fourth. The following season was once again marked by uncertainty. Barcelona made several bids for Fàbregas, while Nasri, Arsenal's star performer the previous campaign, was courted by Manchester City.

Barcelona[link]

On 15 August 2011, Barcelona signed Fàbregas for an initial fee of £29 million (€34 million) with a further £4 million (€5 million) in variables,^[61] ending one of the most protracted transfer sagas in recent times.^[62] Fàbregas joined a team that had won three La Liga titles in a row and two Champions League titles in three years, and one that featured the likes of Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernández, Andrés Iniesta, and David Villa. He made his debut in the second leg of the Supercopa de España, coming on as a substitute against Real Madrid. Barcelona won the tie 3–2 and 5–4 on aggregate.^[63] He scored his first goal in a 2–0 win against FC Porto as Barcelona won the 2011 UEFA Super Cup,^[64] and his first league goal on his league debut against Villarreal CF.

International career[link]

Youth team[link]

Although he features regularly for the Spain national football team, Fàbregas' international career began at youth level. At the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship held in Finland, he finished as top scorer of the tournament despite playing in midfield, and was voted Player of the Tournament.^[7] Spain finished runners-up in the tournament to Brazil.^[65] Fàbregas was next involved in the 2004 UEFA U-17 European Championship, where Spain also finished runners-up.^[66] He was named the Golden Player of the tournament by FIFA.^[66]

Senior team[link]

After emerging as one of Arsenal's key players in only his second season at the club, it did not take long for Fàbregas to be called up to the senior squad. Noting his impressive performances in Arsenal's 2006 Champions League campaign, Spain coach Luis Aragonés named the teenager in the team for a friendly against Ivory Coast.^[67] In that game, Fàbregas became the youngest player capped for Spain in 70 years, beating Sergio Ramos' record.^[2] He received favourable reviews for his début, and was involved in the build-up to Spain's first goal in the 3–2 victory over the Ivorians.^[2][68]

2006 World Cup[link]

On 15 May 2006, Fàbregas was selected for the Spanish 2006 FIFA World Cup squad. During the tournament, he came on as a second-half substitute in Spain's first two group matches, contributing an assist to striker Fernando Torres in their 3–1 victory against Tunisia.^[69] He then started alongside Spain's reserve players (including then-Arsenal teammate José Antonio Reyes) in Spain's third group match against Saudi Arabia.^[70] He earned a starting role in Spain's first knockout-stage match against France, in place of Marcos Senna, but Spain lost 3–1.^[71] Fàbregas also became the youngest player in Spanish football history to participate in a World Cup when he came on as a substitute for Luis García after 77 minutes in the 4–0 victory against Ukraine on 13 June 2006; he was then 19 years and 41 days old.^[72] He was later nominated for the Gillette Young Player of the World Cup, but Germany's Lukas Podolski won the award.^[73]

UEFA Euro 2008[link]

Fàbregas celebrating Spain's Euro 2008 championship

In UEFA Euro 2008, Fàbregas was issued with squad number 10, rather than 18 which he had previously held.^[74] Despite featuring mostly as a substitute, the midfielder made a considerable impact in Spain's campaign. He scored his first international goal in that competition in Spain's 4–1 win over Russia and also had an assist in that game.^[75] Spain won all three of their group games and met Italy in the quarter-finals. In that match, Fàbregas scored the winning penalty in the penalty shoot-out after the teams remained deadlocked 0–0 after extra time.^[76] In the semi-finals, Spain defeated Russia 3–0 with Fàbregas providing two assists.^[75] The midfielder made the starting eleven in the Final against Germany where Spain prevailed 1–0; this was Spain's first major title since 1964.^[77] For his efforts, Fàbregas was named in the Team of the Tournament, a 23-man squad selected by the UEFA Technical Team.^[75]

Confederations Cup 2009[link]

After missing out for several months due to his injury, Fàbregas regained his place as a regular in Vicente del Bosque's squad. In June, he was named in the team for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. He scored his second international goal in a 5–0 win against New Zealand in the competition's group stage.^[78] In the semi-finals against the United States (which Fàbregas started), Spain suffered a shock 2–0 loss, and its 15-game winning streak came to an end.^[79]

2010 World Cup[link]

Fàbregas was selected as a part of del Bosque's 23-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.^[80] With del Bosque preferring a starting midfield of Sergio Busquets, Xabi Alonso, Xavi and Andrés Iniesta, Fàbregas did not start in any of Spain's games in the competition. He featured as a substitute in four of their seven matches, in which Spain lost their opening game before winning the next six en route to the final. In the Final itself, Fàbregas set up the extra-time winner for Iniesta to win Spain the World Cup for the first time in their history.^[81]

International goals[link]

Scores and results list. Spain's goal tally first.

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	10 June 2008	Tivoli Neu, Innsbruck, Austria	Russia	4–1	4–1	UEFA Euro 2008
2.	14 June 2009	Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg, South Africa	New Zealand	4–0	5–0	2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
3.	9 September 2009	Estadio Romano, Mérida, Spain	Estonia	1–0	3–0	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
4.	10 October 2009	Hanrapetakan Stadium, Yerevan, Armenia	Armenia	1–0	2–1	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
5.	18 November 2009	Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria	Austria	1–1	5–1	Friendly
6.	8 June 2010	Nueva Condomina, Murcia, Spain	Poland	4–0	6–0	Friendly
7.	2 September 2011	AFG Arena, St Gallen, Switzerland	Chile	2–2	3–2	Friendly
8.	2 September 2011	AFG Arena, St Gallen, Switzerland	Chile	3–2	3–2	Friendly

Style of play[link]

Arsenal[link]

Fàbregas and Anderson of Manchester United in a 2007–08 game

Originally brought to Arsenal as a youth to slowly develop via the League Cup, Fàbregas was unexpectedly deployed as Arsenal's starting central midfielder following injuries to fellow midfielders Patrick Vieira, Gilberto Silva and Edu during the 2004–05 season. While Vieira served as his role model and mentor,^[82] he styled his game after his childhood hero and compatriot Josep Guardiola.^[11] Because he was of a different mould from his Arsenal predecessors who played in the same position,^[11][21] this led to criticisms of his lightweight frame and less aggressive style of play,^[21][24] with former teammate Ashley Cole criticising the Spaniard as "an unproven featherweight" in his autobiography.^[83]

However, it did not take long for Fàbregas to become one of the most coveted and celebrated young talents in the game with his success at Arsenal. Functioning mostly as a playmaker and renowned for his passing range, he was described as the general of Arsenal's first team, bringing vision, creativity, and an innate understanding of timing and space to Arsenal's intricate passing game, displaying maturity that belied his age.^{[2][3][7][9][38][40][84][85]} He was the main creative force when he was at Arsenal, as exemplified by his 16 assists in all competitions in the 2006–07 season.^[15] Between 2006–07 and 2010–11, Fàbregas created the most chances in the top-division leagues of England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France.^[86]

At Arsenal, Fàbregas also often assumed responsibility for set pieces, taking corners, free kicks and penalties. By his own admission, scoring was a weaker part of his game in his first few seasons at Arsenal; wasteful finishing also being symptomatic of the larger problem surrounding Arsenal in the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons.^[84] This changed initially in the 2007–08 season when he scored 11 goals in his first 16 games, and Arsenal manager Wenger claimed that the Spaniard's previous inability to score was down to a mental state, and even compared the Spaniard to Michel Platini, a French midfielder renowned for scoring.^[87][88] There were also concerns raised over the large number of games Fàbregas was playing for club and country at such a young age,^[67][89] but while he initially avoided long spells on the sidelines, he played significantly fewer games due to injury in his last three seasons with Arsenal.

Statistics[link]

Statistics accurate as of 26 May 2012^[15]

^[91]

Honours[link]

Fàbregas with Spain's Prime Minister Rodríguez Zapatero, and UK's Prime Minister David Cameron

Arsenal[link]

Winner

• FA Cup (1): 2005
• FA Community Shield (1): 2004

Runner-up

• UEFA Champions League: 2005–06
• Premier League: 2004–05
• Football League Cup: 2006–07, 2010–11
• FA Community Shield: 2005

Barcelona[link]

Winner

• Copa del Rey (1): 2011–12
• Supercopa de España (1): 2011
• UEFA Super Cup (1): 2011
• FIFA Club World Cup (1): 2011

Runner-up

• La Liga: 2011–12

International[link]

Winner

• FIFA World Cup: 2010
• UEFA European Championship: 2008

Runner-up

• FIFA U-17 World Championship: 2003
• UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship: 2004

Third place

• FIFA Confederations Cup: 2009

Individual[link]

• FIFA U-17 World Championship Golden Shoe: 2003
• FIFA U-17 World Championship Golden Ball: 2003
• UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship Golden Player: 2004
• Bravo Award: 2006
• Golden Boy: 2006
• UEFA Team of the Year: 2006, 2008
• Premier League Player of the Month: January 2007, September 2007
• ESM Team of the Year: 2007–08, 2009–10
• PFA Young Player of the Year: 2007–08
• PFA Team of the Year: 2007–08, 2009–10
• UEFA Team of the Tournament: 2008

Decorations[link]

• Prince of Asturias Awards: 2010
• Gold Medal of the Royal Order of Sporting Merit: 2011^[92]

Other projects[link]

Fàbregas starred in his own one-time only television programme, called "The Cesc Fàbregas Show: Nike Live", that aired on 19 May 2008. The programme was sponsored by Nike and was shown on Sky Sports. The show featured Fàbregas in several sketches with Arsenal teammates like Philippe Senderos and Nicklas Bendtner, as well as coach Arsène Wenger, Fàbregas' parents and Little Britain star Matt Lucas.^[93]

Fàbregas is also an Honorary Patron of the campaign against racism in football and society, Show Racism the Red Card.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Cesc Fàbregas

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Cesc Fàbregas

• Official website
• FC Barcelona profile
• BDFutbol profile
• Transfermarkt profile
• National team data (Spanish)
• Cesc Fàbregas career stats at Soccerbase
• 2010 FIFA World Cup profile
• Cesc Fàbregas at National-Football-Teams.com
• Cesc Fàbregas – FIFA competition record
• Cesc Fàbregas – UEFA competition record
• Cesc Fàbregas on Facebook
• Cesc Fàbregas on Twitter

Spain squads v t e Spain squad – 2005 FIFA U-20 World Cup 1 B. Ribas 2 Molinero 3 Garrido 4 Alexis 5 Robusté (c) 6 Albiol 7 Juanfran 8 Zapater 9 Llorente 10 J. Soriano 11 Gavilán 12 José Enrique 13 Manu 14 Agus 15 Chica 16 Silva 17 Fàbregas 18 Casadesús 19 Braulio 20 Bergara 21 Roberto Coach: Sáez v t e Spain squad – 2006 FIFA World Cup 1 Casillas 2 Salgado 3 Pernía 4 Marchena 5 Puyol 6 Albelda 7 Raúl (c) 8 Xavi 9 F. Torres 10 Reyes 11 Luis García 12 A. López 13 Iniesta 14 Alonso 15 Ramos 16 Senna 17 Joaquín 18 Fàbregas 19 Cañizares 20 Juanito 21 Villa 22 Ibáñez 23 Reina Coach: Aragonés v t e Spain squad – UEFA Euro 2008 Winners (2nd Title) 1 Casillas (c) 2 Albiol 3 Navarro 4 Marchena 5 Puyol 6 Iniesta 7 Villa 8 Xavi 9 F. Torres 10 Fàbregas 11 Capdevila 12 Cazorla 13 Palop 14 Alonso 15 Ramos 16 García 17 Güiza 18 Arbeloa 19 Senna 20 Juanito 21 Silva 22 De la Red 23 Reina Coach: Aragonés v t e Spain squad – 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup Third Place 1 Casillas (c) 2 Albiol 3 Piqué 4 Marchena 5 Puyol 6 Pablo 7 Villa 8 Xavi 9 F. Torres 10 Fàbregas 11 Capdevila 12 Busquets 13 López 14 Alonso 15 Ramos 16 Llorente 17 Güiza 18 Riera 19 Arbeloa 20 Cazorla 21 Silva 22 Mata 23 Reina Coach: Del Bosque v t e Spain squad – 2010 FIFA World Cup Winners (1st Title) 1 Casillas (c) 2 Albiol 3 Piqué 4 Marchena 5 Puyol 6 Iniesta 7 Villa 8 Xavi 9 F. Torres 10 Fàbregas 11 Capdevila 12 Valdés 13 Mata 14 Alonso 15 Ramos 16 Busquets 17 Arbeloa 18 Pedro 19 Llorente 20 Martínez 21 Silva 22 Navas 23 Reina Coach: Del Bosque v t e Spain squad – UEFA Euro 2012 1 Casillas (c) 2 Albiol 3 Piqué 4 Martínez 5 Juanfran 6 Iniesta 7 Pedro 8 Xavi 9 Torres 10 Fàbregas 11 Negredo 12 Valdés 13 Mata 14 Alonso 15 Ramos 16 Busquets 17 Arbeloa 18 Jordi Alba 19 Llorente 20 Cazorla 21 Silva 22 Navas 23 Reina Coach: Del Bosque