Fabregas is running on empty

ARSENAL fans should not worry too much about the similarities between Arsene Wenger and Basil Fawlty.

These have been apparent for some time.

What SHOULD concern them is the growing likeness of Cesc Fabregas to the overworked, exasperated Manuel. And, yes, they both come from Barcelona.

As Arsenal head for Anfield tomorrow for the conclusion of their Champions League quarter-final with Liverpool, they have the increasing look of a team running on empty.

And no one more than Fabregas.

This is one thoroughbred being flogged to death.

The young Spaniard will not be 21 until next month and yet he has already played an astonishing 204 times for club and country.

By the same age, Frank Lampard had taken part in just 100 and Steven Gerrard a mere 84.

Back in November, he was surprisingly played in Seville when carrying a hamstring injury.

At a time when he required an extensive break, he was rushed back inside three weeks.

Except for one or two performances like his magnificent night at the San Siro, he has never really quite caught up.

This is no fault of his own. For that, you have to look at Wenger’s stubborn refusal to add to a squad that is four or five players short of what is required to maintain a serious, season-long challenge.

He needs one or two more midfield players following the decline of Gilberto, the emergence of Tomas Rosicky as someone who spends almost as much time on the treatment table as Freddie Ljungberg and the current failure of either Abou Diaby or Denilson to move on to a new level.

Admittedly, Mathieu Flamini has proved an inspiration this season but he can only do so much. And he is not going to get much better.

Consequently, more and more pressure is piled on Fabregas.

You then have the unending injury problems of Robin van Persie — rushed back far too soon — the sad blow suffered by Eduardo and the increasing evidence Nicklas Bendtner is no more than a mid-table Premier League player.

Throw all this in the mix and Wenger’s unwillingness to bolster his squad with big-name £10million-plus signings grows increasingly perplexing.

As for Fabregas, he needs all the sleep he can get.