Pique: I understand why Fabregas wants freedom like at Arsenal

Pique: I understand why Fabregas wants freedom like at Arsenal

By Stefan Coerts

Apr 10, 2013 12:29:00 PM

The defender has highlighted the differences between Spanish and English football and has stressed that he always dreamed of returning to Camp Nou after joining Manchester United

Gerard Pique has stated that he understands why Barcelona team-mate Cesc Fabregas would like to have the same freedom he had at Arsenal at his current club, but has stressed that the difference between Spanish and English football forced the midfielder to change his style of play after his return to the Blaugrana.

The versatile midfielder left the Barca youth academy for Arsenal in the summer of 2003 before returning to his boyhood club in 2011.

Fabregas initially struggled to find his best form at the Blaugrana, though, and Pique feels the differences between the English and Spanish game played a large part in his team-mate's trials and tribulations.

"I can see how going back to a positional game can be difficult if you have had the freedom to play according to your intuition instead of a collective order. I can see how Cesc would like to have more freedom as he used to have at Arsenal, but you have to play according to where you are, of course," Pique told The Daily Telegraph.

"Here in Spain it’s always about passing the ball from one side to the other, but it’s not just passing, you have to be in the right place to receive it and you have to develop a quick mind to see the pass, to know what you are going to do next. 

"To do so you have to have that discipline you talk about and that gets taught when you are a kid. In England you have more time on the ball; midfielders, especially those who move between the lines, have more space. There is more freedom to move around, and it is enjoyable as a midfielder."

Like Fabregas, Pique left Barcelona at a young age, too, but he has made it clear that he always had a return to the Camp Nou side on his mind after joining Manchester United.

"You want to come back. This is the best club in the world, you get titles, enjoy the style and we are at home. If you leave it is because you don’t see the road clear to the top. 

"When Cesc and I left, in the same year, we had a great team with Messi in it. We were beating everybody but I took the risk of leaving all that behind and test myself. But everybody that leaves does so thinking, 'I will be back one day'." ------------------ goal.com