Dani Ceballos: Zinedine Zidane told me that my future is in Real Madrid

The midfielder also asserted that he was told by the Los Blancos manager that he will likely get a chance to prove himself.

Arsenal midfielder Dani Ceballos has elaborated on a conversation that he has had with his parent club Real Madrid’s manager Zinedine Zidane.

The discussion between the two was concerned around the midfielder’s future with the Los Blancos.

For the uninitiated, Ceballos had joined the North London-based side in the summer of 2019 on a season-long loan deal.

Whilst speaking to DAZN, Ceballos mentioned, “I saw Zidane in Valdebebas a few months ago when I was recovering from my injury and he told me that he watched my games with Arsenal.

“I have a good relationship with him and he always told me that we are similar players in the sense that I need to play very often in order to be in good condition.”

The 23-year-old has been a fairly consistent figure on the field for the Gunners in the Premier League this season.

He has represented them in 14 matches in the league and has secured two assists. Overall, he has made 24 appearances for Arsenal in all competitions and bagged a solitary goal too.

Dani Ceballos continued, “He always told me that my future is in Real Madrid and that I needed to be patient because I will likely have a chance.”

The Spaniard has a contract until the summer of 2023 with Real Madrid. During his time with the Spanish giants, he played 23 matches in the La Liga 2018/19 season. He had scored three goals for them back then.

There were rumors of Dani Ceballos having fallen out of favor with Zidane back when his move to Arsenal was confirmed in July 2019. However, Zidane had clarified on that aspect by affirming, “No, it’s not that I did not get along with Dani Ceballos that he left the team.

“I think he needed a lot more play[ing time] because he’s an important player. It’s true that at Real, he did not have enough minutes, that’s all. There are a lot of players here, a lot of competition. I wish him to play many games and do well with his new team, Arsenal.”