Barcelona President Attempted to Block Cesc Fabregas Move to Chelsea

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu attempted to block Cesc Fabregas' move to Chelsea, the midfielder has revealed.

The former Arsenal captain completed his return to the Premier League last Friday, signing a five year contract with the Blues in a deal that reportedly cost the club £27m.

Fabregas, 27, confirmed after completing his move to Stamford Bridge that Arsene Wenger turned down the opportunity to exercise a buyback clause in his contract before he spoke to Chelsea. Despite his history with the Gunners however, the Spain international was sold on the Blues' ambition and had no qualms in joining the west London club, despite efforts from Barcelona to block the deal.

"I asked Barcelona to find a way for me to leave the club," Fabregas told Cadena Cope. "The president tried to stop the sale, but I already had my mind made up.

"At the time I spoke with (Barcelona's sporting director) Andoni Zubizarreta and the president and I told them I wanted to leave. Honestly, it all went really smoothly. I'm not leaving for any specific reason, if not for a multitude of different things, my own errors and that's it.

"If I didn't think that I'd be happy at Chelsea, I would've never made this decision. Above all, I want to be happy both professionally and personally."

Fabregas' arrival at Stamford Bridge has been heralded by the Blues' Spanish contingent in both Cesar Azpilicueta and Fernando Torres in recent days. In the wake of Frank Lampard's departure from the club, Jose Mourinho recently praised his most recent acquisition as the final piece to his midfield puzzle.

"He's different from [Nemanja] Matic, Ramires and Oscar," the Chelsea boss told Spanish newspaper Marca.

"Fabregas is a great player that gives a new dimension to our team. With him we have a comprehensive central midfield. I wanted a midfielder with a certain style and now I have him."