Cesc Fabregas reveals Arsenal 'feeling' ahead of Premier League title defence

Cesc Fabregas believes Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal players will always ‘stick to the plan’

Cesc Fabregas has praised Arsenal’s hierarchy for showing ‘patience’ towards Mikel Arteta and believes the players are fully behind the manager ahead of their Premier League title defence.

Fabregas returned to his former club for a friendly on Wednesday night as his Como side held Arsenal to a 1-1 draw at the Emirates Stadium before the Gunners won a penalty shootout.

Arsenal will now play Manchester City in the Community Shield this Sunday before beginning the defence of their Premier League title at home to Coventry City on August 21.

Fabregas, who made 303 appearances during his time at Arsenal, praised his former club after Como’s friendly at the Emirates and claimed that the Italian club are trying to copy certain traits shown by the Gunners in recent years.

‘Congratulations to the club in general starting from seven, eight years ago when they first started with this project,’ Fabregas said.

Cesc Fabregas returned to Arsenal on Wednesday for Como’s 1-1 draw at the Emirates Stadium (Getty)

‘Because what you see in football every day, what Arsenal did, especially in the difficult moments, it doesn’t exist. I told Edu, I told Andrea (Berta) when I came last year to a Champions League game, I said congratulations to the whole club for the patience, for sticking together, for sticking to the plan when for three years in a row, correct me if I’m wrong, finished eighth, eighth, eighth, fourth year nearly Champions League, it was a big disappointment, Tottenham came, you finish fifth, but you keep going because you have a plan, because you have an objective, because you have progression, you keep going forward.