(CNN) -- Arsenal have rejected out of hand a formal offer from Barcelona for their talismanic captain Cesc Fabregas, the English Premier League club confirmed on Wednesday.
The Spanish champions officially launched their bid to re-sign the 23-year-old earlier in the day when director general Joan Oliver told reporters an offer had been made.
Fabregas came through the youth ranks at the Nou Camp before joining Arsenal in 2003, and declared last month he would like to return to Spain.
The midfielder then backtracked by saying that he would put his future in the hands of Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger and instead focus on playing for Spain at the World Cup in South Africa.
