Why Arsenal should try to sign Dani Ceballos permanently

According to the Daily Express, Spanish playmaker Dani Ceballos has admitted that he is currently enjoying his time on loan at Arsenal and has absolutely no regrets over his decision to leave Real Madrid in the summer. 

Having earned the trust of manager Unai Emery, the 23-year-old has also revealed that he is happy with his situation in North London and pleased to be playing regularly for the Gunners, something that wasn’t really the case with him during his time at Real Madrid. (h/t Express)

As per the report, Ceballos has also acknowledged the fact that he was frustrated with his lack of involvement in the first-team at the Bernabeu over the past couple of seasons following a move from Real Betis back in 2017 and a move to Arsenal has done his career a world of good.

Ceballos made a total of 56 appearances for the Los Blancos over the past couple of campaigns, albeit a lot of those were merely cameos off the bench as a substitute.

However, things have certainly taken a turnaround for the 23-year-old in the positive direction since his temporary switch to North London earlier in the summer, with the Spaniard already establishing himself as a frequent starter under Emery. 

The playmaker has made a total of 11 appearances for the Gunners in all competitions this term, including 5 starts in the Premier League, scoring once and assisting twice in the process. Emery has placed his trust in the Spaniard and he has so far repaid the manager’s faith in his abilities.  

While those numbers are not overly impressive, the fans would probably acknowledge the fact that Ceballos has been an inspired addition to Arsenal’s midfield ranks.

The Madrid loanee has been at the centre of a lot of good things that the Gunners have achieved in the opening quarter of the ongoing campaign, endearing him to the hearts of the club faithful with his work-rate, commitment, eye for key passes and creativity.

With Mesut Ozil very much a marginalised figure these days and Aaron Ramsey no longer in the frame, the onus has been on Ceballos to spark that creativity for the Gunners in the final third and the 23-year-old has not risen to the occasion quite brilliantly.

Ceballos’ rich vein of form at Arsenal has earned him a call-up to the Spanish national team for the ongoing Euro 2020 qualifiers and if he continues to flourish in the coming months, it won’t be long before the Gunners start thinking about ironing out a deal with Real Madrid to sign him permanently. 

The former Betis man has won plenty of hearts in North London with his desire and hunger on the pitch, while also catching the eye with his exceptional close control, technical abilities on the ball and all-around playmaking skills, meaning that the Gunners would be well within their rights if they were already considering a permanent deal for Ceballos. 

To put things into perspective, Ceballos seems to have the perfect blend of attributes illustrated by two of their former players, Santi Cazorla and Aaron Ramsey, and it is easy to see that Arsenal making a move to secure a permanent deal for Dani Ceballos would be a step in the right direction. 

The Gunners have made it a point to sign young and developing players since the appointment of Unai Emery, as evident from the recruitment of Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi, Gabriel Martinelli, Nicolas Pepe and William Saliba, and Ceballos, who is only 23, still has plenty of room for improvement in the years to come. 

The Spaniard is already close to being a complete playmaking package in the midfield and one would expect him to get better with time, meaning that a permanent move for Ceballos would enable the Gunners to enjoy the fruits of his prime years. 

With Ozil’s exit an inevitability, Ceballos has already established himself as a key part of Emery’s plans and he certainly has the qualities to be a tailor-made fit for the manager’s preferred style of play.

Keeping all the aforementioned factors in mind, it should be a no-brainer for the Gunners to enter into negotiations with Madrid over a permanent move for the 23-year-old, albeit such a stance is likely to depend on the Los Blancos’ asking price for the midfielder. 

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However, if the price is right there is no reason why Arsenal shouldn’t start thinking about a permanent deal, given that Ceballos is unlikely to want to return to the Bernabeu next season to simply warm the benches.