22 November 2023 , 11:11
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Dani Ceballos is currently on the fringes of the Real Madrid team, but four seasons ago was lining up most weeks for Arsenal - not that he wanted to.
The Spaniard joined the Gunners on loan from the La Liga giants for the 2019/20 season, at which time Arsenal were still under the guidance of former boss Unai Emery. Things started brightly enough, with a sensational home debut against Burnley sparking Santi Cazorla comparisons.
However, things soon soured as Ceballos failed to hit the lofty heights many had tipped him for so early on into his Arsenal stay. For those wondering why that might have been the case, the midfielder has since opened up on his struggles at the Emirates, while acknowledging the importance of his Gunners stint to the wider landscape of his career.
Speaking on Universo Valdano back in March, per AS, the midfielder claimed: "I came to Arsenal because Unai Emery contacted me. He came to my house and told me that I was the ideal player for his project in his second year at Arsenal.
"I saw the rhythm of the competition and I thought, 'I want to go back to Spain, how long is left to go back'. It is a very competitive league, very physical, and it was difficult for me to get into the rhythm, but it makes you a much better player. I think my time there has been fundamental in my career."
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Ceballos didn't have much time with Emery before he was sacked from his post as Arsenal boss in late 2019 and replaced by Mikel Arteta, who seemed to get much more of a tune out of the Real Madrid loanee. So much so, that at the end of the 2019/20 season, Arteta opted to land Ceballos' signature for a second time and keep him around for the 2020/21 campaign.
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Dani Ceballos hinted that life in the Premier League was not for him after two seasons at ArsenalUnfortunately for both, Ceballos' second term at the Emirates passed by with little to note. He was a regular fixture in an Arsenal side that endured some of the worst form the club has seen since the 1950s as calls for Arteta to lose his job grew louder among disgruntled fans.
However, Ceballos did at least take the liberty of defending the Arsenal boss. He made clear that Arteta had all the potential required to succeed at the Emirates, but it would be a task he'd complete without the midfielder in the picture.
"Arteta is a coach who I am sure will be one of the best in the world in the next few years, but I would like to return to the Spanish league," he told El Larguero.