Fabregas is not an unknown figure at the Palau Blaugrana, far from it, in fact. His grandparents came from the Barcelona region and were huge fans of Barça, and the now 29-year-old played for the club for five seasons, from 2018 to 2023.
"My first stay in Barcelona changed my life, quite honestly. I grew up as a player, as a professional as well, I think I made massive progress while I played for Barça the first time around," he explains. "But I also met my wife here, my son was born here. The bond between the city and me is very strong."
So when the interest from Barça came around, the thought of a comeback started to take shape in Fabregas’ mind. But there is a distance between thinking and doing.
"I did not quite believe it at first, because very few players have left Barça and then come back. I can only think of Valero Rivera. So, in a way, I did not think it was something possible."
Of course, Fabregas was far from unhappy in Veszprém. If you put aside the Hungarian language, which he struggled to learn, he has no bad words to say about his two years playing for the Hungarian powerhouse.
"I grew up even more as a player, I learnt a lot of new things, especially in the first year with Momir Ilic as a coach," he recalls. Moving to Hungary was also, he says, "like getting out of my comfort zone. I am proud that I was able to adapt to new surroundings. This experience brought me a lot of positive things."
But the call from home was too strong, even if former Barça coach, Xavi Pascual, now at the head of Veszprém, would have wanted Fabregas to stay.
"He made me the captain of his team, we have always had a relationship. But he understood the family project that I had going back to Barça, and in return, I gave everything until my last day in Veszprém."
