There was so much debate and discussion about how Real Madrid would integrate Kylian Mbappé last summer that the retirement of arguably Los Blancos’ most important player went largely unnoticed. Toni Kroos’ last season in all-white was arguably his best. He made Real Madrid tick. And yet no effort was made to replace this key component.
It certainly wasn’t the plan for Dani Ceballos to be Kroos’ successor. In fact, the 28-year-old was linked with a move away from the Santiago Bernabéu last summer such was his peripheral status in Carlo Ancelotti’s squad. Half a season on and Ceballos is holding things together for Real Madrid just as Kroos did so effectively.
Ceballos has already played more league minutes this season than he did in the entirety of the 2023/24 campaign. He has started six of Real Madrid’s last eight matches in all competitions and only started on the bench in the other two because Ancelotti felt the need to rest him for more important fixtures to come.
Tuesday’s Champions League last 24 tie against Manchester City is certainly one of those fixtures. Ordinarily, these two clubs would expect to meet at a later stage of the competition, but both City and Real Madrid have suffered issues this season. This knockout match could be a catalyst for either to enter a new era.
City’s new era started in the January transfer window when the likes of Omar Marmoush, Nico González, Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis arrived at the Etihad Stadium. Pep Guardiola clearly wants a younger pool of players to handle his high-intensity approach and the rebuild is already under way.
This process, however, is very much still in its early stages and Manchester City lack the midfield unit to control matches in the way they used to, certainly while Rodri remains on the sidelines. This is where Ceballos could be a deciding factor against the reigning Premier League champions. He could swing the tie in Real Madrid’s favour more than any other player.
Against Atlético Madrid in Saturday’s Madrid Derby, no player on either side had more touches of the ball than Ceballos. Nobody completed more passes either nor did another player have a higher completion rate of long passes. Real Madrid might have drawn 1-1, but Ceballos was frequently the one driving them forward.
Ancelotti went through several midfield formulas in the early part of the season. He used a central trio of Jude Bellingham, Aurélien Tchouaméni and Fede Valverde in the opening weekend draw against Mallorca. However, this set-up limited Bellingham as an attacking force and left the forward detached from the rest of the team.
Luka Modrić was brought into the lineup for a period, but the Croatian is at the stage of his career where he lacks the mobility and physicality to play 90 minutes in every match. Eduardo Camavinga is another midfield option. However, an injury crisis has pushed the Frenchman into the backline as a stop-gap solution.
In Ceballos and Valverde, though, Ancelotti has settled on a pairing in the centre of the pitch. The former is the controller while the latter is a force of nature in the way he covers so much ground and offers Real Madrid a source of dynamism. With Ceballos and Valverde behind him, Bellingham also has the freedom to get forward.
As a defensive barrier in front of the back four, Ceballos has proved his worth. No other Real Madrid player is averaging more tackles per 90 minutes than the 28-year-old who is also only behind Valverde, Tchouameni, Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão for interceptions – and two of those players are currently out with long-term injuries.
Arsenal fans could be forgiven for being somewhat bemused by Ceballos’ recent rise. The midfielder spent two seasons on loan at the Emirates Stadium, but failed to make a lasting impression at a time when the North London club was in a transitional period under new manager Mikel Arteta.
While Martin Ødegaard stayed in North London after a successful loan from Real Madrid at the same time to eventually become the Gunners’ captain, Ceballos returned to his parent club. Los Blancos had no plan for his future development. He became a forgotten figure at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Earlier in his career, Ceballos was one of the brightest midfield prospects of his generation. He was Player of the Tournament at the 2017 U21 European Championships and quickly earned a move to Real Madrid from Real Betis. Since then, his career has taken a meandering route, but Ceballos is finally the player he always promised to be.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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