Lukazan In 04-05, I remember my mates and I thinking that for the first time, Vieira was on the slide. A bit slow on the ball, giving it away more than he used to, going down a bit too easily for a big fella, etc. Vieira-Fabregas also didn't seem to click as a pair. By contrast, the Fabregas-Flamini midfield, while raw, looked sharp and full of potential (something that we saw come to fruition in 07-08). I've watched a few games from that season recently and I can understand what Wenger was probably seeing and thinking at the time. He knew that in his preferred 442, Vieira-Fabregas wouldn't work and that if he wanted to develop Fabregas, Vieira would have to go. Patrick was never going to sit on the bench. It was a gamble that played a big part in us falling off a cliff from 05 through to 07.
In hindsight, maybe Wenger could have deployed a 433 to accommodate both Fabregas and Vieira. If he had his time again, I think he'd have kept Vieira longer than he did...
