Speaking recently on the Football Writers Podcast, Adrian Clarke claimed Arsenal have ‘other priorities’ than the re-signing of Dani Ceballos this summer.
Ceballos, who was on a season-long loan from Real Madrid at Arsenal last season, made 24 Premier League appearances for the Gunners, registering two assists.
Over those appearances, the central midfielder averaged a 6.84 WhoScored match rating, ranking him as Arsenal’s ninth-best player in the 2019/20 season.
As a result of these sturdy performances for the north London side, there have been reports suggesting that Arsenal are interested in re-signing the 23-year-old on another loan deal next season.
However, speaking on the Football Writers Podcast, Adrian Clarke claimed that, despite being impressed with the performances of Ceballos in an Arsenal shirt, the club should move for another ‘more athletic’ midfielder this summer.
He said: “He got off to a flyer actually, I was there for his debut against Burnley. He was brilliant, he was such an exciting player to watch and then everything sort of plateaued, [he] fell out of favour.
“He’s back in now and he’s formed a good partnership with Granit Xhaka, and I think that he’s probably persuaded Arsenal that he is someone to reinvest in, maybe for another loan next season.
“As well as he has done, is he the player that Arsenal need right now? I would suggest that he would be a handy player to have for next season, but stylistically, I’m not so sure actually – I think that Arsenal have other priorities. They need somebody more athletic inside the centre of the park.”
TIF Thoughts…
As such, it would certainly appear that, while Clarke is seemingly of the belief that Ceballos has done enough to convince Arsenal to sign him once again next season, he also believes that the club actually doesn’t particularly need the £28.8million-rated Madrid man.
Do you think Arsenal should sign Dani Ceballos again this summer?
Yes
No
In any case, with reports suggesting that Arsenal are close to bringing the Spaniard back to the club for next season, it seems as if we will find out whether or not Ceballos can be a success for Arsenal in the middle of the park.