After one of the many losses suffered by Chelsea FC this season, a BBC report claimed that an anonymous player had some unsavory things to say about his manager Jose Mourinho. The report claimed that the player said he “would rather lose than win for Mourino”.

Understandably that ruffled some feathers around the football world, especially among Chelsea supporters. Some believed that it was Nemanja Matic after he was embarrassed by being brought on at halftime and then subbed off just 20 or so minutes later. Others thought it might be Eden Hazard because he was often singled out by the manager for his poor defensive play.

Then for several reasons, the focus fell to Cesc Fabgregas. Who else could it be? This was Fabregas, Chelsea FC’s enemy number one when he was at Arsenal and the same man who blasted Mourinho in the media when he was at Barcelona. Why wouldn’t he the chief suspect as the leader of a revolt against a man many thought that he hated?

Well, aside from the fact the he played for Arsenal and Barcelona, let us take a step back and truly evaluate what we are saying. Fabregas, who likely had several other offers on the table, chose to leave his boyhood club to play for a club and a manager that he supposedly hated just so he could eventually take him down when the time was right? He came to Chelsea, nearly broke the Premier League assist record, won two domestic trophies, and then decided that he was going to sabotage the club?

Even James Bond himself could not think of enacting such devious subterfuge. Many footballers are petty and egotistical but to suggest that this was all part of the Spaniard’s master plan to take down an old nemesis is just plain absurd.

Some believe, including Rucker Haringey from our sister site Playing For 90, that Fabregas is doing all of this because he wants Pep Guardiola to become the next Chelsea FC manager. Guardiola and Fabregas only spent one season together at Barcelona and while they won some secondary trophies including the FIFA Club World Cup, they did not seriously challenge for the Champions League and finished nine points behind Mourinho and Real Madrid. It would be a stretch to suggest that he and Guardiola formed some sort of unbreakable bond during that single season.

Fabregas has a theory as to why he is being singled out and it makes sense on several levels. He to Spain’s Radio COPE as quoted by Sky Sports, “If you play well you are the first to have the finger pointed at you when things are going badly. When things go well you are the best and when things go wrong you are finished, you are useless.”

As one of Chelsea’s best players last season, or at least the first half, it makes sense that he would be targeted for being so poor this year. He has looked off the pace and many have criticized his mental toughness. That criticism may be warranted but a lack of effort because of supposed mental weakness is very different from purposeful sabotage.

To counter these claims, Fabregas has gone on the offensive in the media. He spoke this week about his relationship with Mourinho and said:

“Mourinho trusts us and we trust him. Obviously it is a lie [that Fabregas led a mutiny against Mourinho]. I backed him in a very difficult time. My relationship with Mourinho is good, as always, but when things aren’t going well people are always looking for something.” Source: Sky Sports

Simply put, Cesc Fabregas is a professional football who has nothing to gain from sabotaging an entire football club or ending the career of a manager at his beloved club. He still has to answer for his poor play and perceived lack of effort but not to absurd claims that he is the agent provocateur at Chelsea FC.