For the past year, Dani Ceballos has been plying his trade for Premier League side Arsenal, where he has had a roller-coaster of a season. However, the Spaniard still dreams about establishing himself as a regular in the Real Madrid side, where he will head back once his loan spell gets over in England.
The Gunners have already expressed their lack of interest in extending the loan spell for Los Blancos man, meaning he will be heading back to Spain as soon as the season gets over. Now, Deportes Cuatro (as cited by AS) reports that the 23-year-old sees himself as a member of Zidane’s team and would be glad to succeed for the Madrid side in the future.
The on-loan Arsenal player had this to say, “I am happy and I have a contract with Real Madrid. I am 23 years old, I have still got so much to offer. Now I feel much more a player and I am prepared for any challenge that comes my way.”
Dani Ceballos’ career path
Ceballos arrived in Real in 2017 after six years with Real Betis, where he started in the youth team. He graduated from there to the first team and made his debut in the La Liga in 2014. Soon after, the club was relegated, and Ceballos stuck with the team, only to guide them back in the La Liga after a season. For the next two years, he became a vital part of the midfield at Betis, before sealing a move to Madrid.
The next two seasons were admittedly disappointing as he could never establish himself as a regular in the Real Madrid side, playing in 35 league matches, a majority of which came from the bench. As a result, the Spain international was sent to Arsenal, as the Premier League giants were in dire need of a central-midfielder at that time.
His life as it would be
Initially, Unai Emery appreciated his style of play, thus providing him with ample opportunities to impress. However, soon his form deteriorated, which coupled with a hamstring injury, made his life difficult for him in London. Ceballos returned from the injury, started to train hard and being impressed by his training, manager Mikel Arteta again inducted him into the first team. By the time the league was halted because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ceballos has established himself as a first-team player.
Now that Arsenal have made it clear that they would not want the midfielder in their ranks for the next season, the ball lies in the court of Zinedine Zidane. The French gaffer would have to make up his mind as to whether he plans to induct Ceballos into the team. Indeed, the ex-Betis man has not impressed many with his performances, but the fact that Modric does not seem like an option for the longer term may mean that Zidane should hold on to the player till an able replacement is found.
