After two years on loan at Arsenal , Dani Ceballos has suggested that he wants a permanent move next season if he isn’t going to get the chance to prove himself at Real Madrid .
Ceballos had mixed fortunes at the Emirates, with an inconsistent first season tailing off into an underwhelming second.
He was sent off against Villarreal in his third-last outing for Mikel Arteta’s side, rounding off an error-strewn campaign.
With no sign that either party is interested in a permanent transfer, Ceballos’ time at Arsenal is now at an end.
He will return to the Bernabeu this summer and, speaking to Canal Sur Radio, he has made it clear that he does not want to go out on loan again next term.
“The Premier League is a very attractive league, I was lucky to be able to play in it last season and win the FA Cup, and this second season has helped me to consolidate myself,” he said.
“I am very happy because I have learned a lot, I have become a better player, more complete, and I think that – although my chapter has not closed as we would have liked, with another title – I am very happy with the experience.
“It is true that I have a contract with Real Madrid for the next two years and I would not like to go on loan to another club again.
“With the experience of the last two years, I am a player who needs to feel important. I would like to start next year from the beginning and feeling important, but settling down. So, it’s important going forward to know what you want to do.
Was Dani Ceballos a success or failure at Arsenal? Comment below
“I think that a player achieves his maximum level when he is completely happy and for that he has to be 100 percent focused on his club.
“I am 24 years old, I am a very young player, with a lot of time still ahead of me, and the truth is that my expectations are clear: to settle in a club, feel important and enjoy football.”
With Zinedine Zidane stepping down as manager earlier this week , it’s possible that Ceballos could impress his successor.
“It is true that with Zizou I had fewer opportunities than I had thought I would, but now Madrid is without a coach,” he added.
“We do not know what will happen in two or three weeks, there is talk of many things and I think that right now it is time to disconnect a bit from football, prepare well for what is coming and, when Madrid have their next coach, let’s talk and see what we want. [Then] it will be time to decide the future.”
Ceballos has been linked with a move to Real Betis, the club where he made his senior breakthrough.
Asked about a possible return to Andalusia, he said: “Betis has a very good squad, I don’t know what [Manuel] Pellegrini and [Antonio] Cordon are planning for next year.
"It’s still early and I have to focus on my next goal, which is to play the Olympics now. From there, I will decide my future.”
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