1 hour ago 1

Real Madrid fringe midfielder shows he has a place in Xabi Alonso’s plans

Dani Ceballos came very close to leaving Real Madrid during the summer window, with a transfer to Marseille all but finalised before he performed a U-turn.

The 29-year-old midfielder decided not to join the Ligue 1 outfit and even though there were talks of a possible late move to Real Betis, he ended up staying at the Santiago Bernabeu.

While he stayed, Ceballos’ chances of playing regularly were always going to be unlikely, for he was barely used by Xabi Alonso – be it at the FIFA Club World Cup or the first three games of the season.

Ceballos gets his chance vs Sociedad and makes it count

But the game against Real Sociedad this past weekend saw Dani Ceballos start in midfield in place of Federico Valverde, dealing with fatigue after international travel.

And, the Spaniard made the most of his chance against Real Sociedad, showcasing that he still has a place in Alonso’s tactical setup at Real Madrid.

Indeed, according to AS, Alonso believes Ceballos has a playmaking ability that is scarce within the squad.

The coaching staff considers that he has a creative capacity that is lacking within some of the other midfielders like Eduardo Camavinga or Valverde.

Real Madrid fringe midfielder shows he has a place in Xabi Alonso’s plans

Dani Ceballos took his chance vs Sociedad. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

In his short time at Real Madrid, Alonso has showed that he is not afraid of making big decisions and the only way a player gets a chance is through merit.

Ceballos showed signs of fight in his first start of the season vs Sociedad. But it is now up to the Spaniard to show consistently that he is deserving of a starting spot over the others.

Ceballos’ numbers against Real Sociedad

As mentioned earlier, Ceballos’ performance in San Sebastian strengthens his case. He misplaced only one pass (out of 26 attempted), made ten passes in the final third (with a 90% success rate, higher than Arda Guler’s 86%, for example), and was involved 41 times in plays.

While it was not necessarily an exemplary performance, Ceballos put in a solid shift and showed he can contribute more than just a rotation option.

But with Camavinga’s return on the horizon and Jude Bellingham not far away either, it is now up to the Spaniard to do so consistently and make the most of every chance he gets.