Arsenal: Dani Ceballos would perfectly replace Aaron Ramsey, and more

Completing the loan for Dani Ceballo would fill the Aaron Ramse void and allow greater transfer movement for Arsenal. The benefits are multifaceted.

Months ago, I detailed how Donny van de Beek would fit the role that Aaron Ramsey would soon be vacating in Arsenal’s starting eleven. His creativity, expression, vision, youth and experience  made him the perfect fit offensively and defensively.

Since the summer transfer window opened, little has been heard on that particular front while other holes have been filled. William Saliba just agreed to transfer to North London, with Arsenal loaning the centre-back back to Saint Etienne for the upcoming season. Add the young Brazilian wingers Gabriel Martinelli and Everton Soares and the window has gone wonderfully. While Van de Beek seems unlikely at this point, another brilliant option in Dani Ceballos appears imminent.

The young Spanish midfielder, just voted player of the U-21 European Championships after his nation’s victory, is poised to agree to a loan agreement with the Gunners. According to Marca, the deal would be a one-year loan with no option to buy with Arsenal footing his entire weekly salary, allegedly only around £50k.

If his fit is better than that of Denis Suarez, it would not shock me that the player may be bought upon the completion of the loan. With Zidane not keen on Dani Ceballos moving forward at Real Madrid, that type of synergy could financially and practically benefit all parties. While it would be ideal to have the option to purchase the player after the year loan guaranteed, the circumstance is still advantageous for the Gunners nonetheless.

His skillset, experience at a major club, and youth are the perfect match for an Arsenal side that requires all of those abilities and characteristics. His vision and passing could connect the back three or four to players with pure genius and creativity, like Mesut Özil, Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

He would not be a defensive liability, similar to Aaron Ramsey, and would echo his box to box play and scoring propensity as well. Playing fast and from the back to front of the shape is key to Unai Emery, and Dani Ceballos meets those requirements while also being financially plausible for the North London outfit.

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After having missed out on Champions League play with a fifth place Premiership finish and the Europa League final loss to Chelsea, finances for the Gunners have been reported as precarious at best.

If initial reports were to be believed, they would have already overspent this summer. While many of the deals have caveats to allow greater financial flexibility this summer, the Ceballos loan further enables this. The Saliba loan back, installed payments as reportedly offered for Tierney, or performance based add-ons for Everton all allow Arsenal to keep building and progressing. Despite the financial limitations that poor play down the stretch of last years Premiership and Europa League Final positioned the team in, they continue to wiggle more room out of an already small transfer window.

These moves, and the manner in which they to go about them, makes me believe that Kieran Tierney will also be a Gunner by the end of the summer transfer window as well. Tierney would fit in to the back line right away alongside youth like Hector Bellerin and experience like Nacho Monreal with three back, or alongside Sokratis centrally with four back.

With Saliba set to join after the upcoming season, great youth and potential would be at the centre defensive position for years to come at Arsenal.

Dani Ceballos would be the financially plausible means to add great fluidity to the attacking midfield position, to which he’d be feeding new ambition and talent, the likes of Martinelli and Everton out wide. A renovated team appears ever more likely to be stepping foot onto the Emirates in August.

A team with such youth from without and within, should be seen as a possible threat for many years to come with the proper preparation and coaching. Unai Emery has demonstrated his ability to grow players and make the most out of what his teams do best. With such youth, talent and depth, he has only but to grow and add practical depth to his starting eleven’s to grow a formidable side in North London once more.