Arsenal scout Danny Karbassiyoon dropped in on former Gunner Cesc Fabregas during a recent visit to Barcelona, posting a photo of the pair together.
Karbassiyoon actually used to play for the north London side, but retired from football in 2007 at the age of 22 due to persistent knee problems, and was promptly employed by Arsenal to try to unearth up-and-coming talent in North America.
Having joined the the Gunners in summer 2003 at the same time as Fabregas, the pair struck up a friendship, and Karbassiyoon has kept in contact since.
Asked to describe his relationship with the Barca and Spain playmaker in a question and answer session with fans on Reddit, Karbassiyoon said the following:
“Cesc has always been down to Earth, and I think that is one of biggest reasons I’ve enjoyed staying in touch with him,” said the Iranian-American.
“We signed the same year so I’ve known him since he lived in digs and seen him go from a kid with a lot of potential to a kid that has won the World Cup and the European Championships twice.
“Like many footballers he is really competitive and isn’t a fan of losing. Every athlete deals with losses and poor performances their own way.
“I wouldn’t say he shuns people – that competitive nature makes him want to reflect on matches though and see how he can continue to improve. Of course that spills over into FIFA too, and if I ever beat him, he generally plays me again until he wins!”
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