Ceballos takes reins of Madrid midfield

Ceballos, in his role as first receiver, establishes himself as the main organizer of the game, distinguishing himself with his impressive statistics. Have Real Madrid found the man capable of taking on the role left vacant by Toni Kroos?

The months pass and the shadow of the German continues to hang over Santiago Bernabéu. Although Real Madrid have been able to bounce back after the departure of many legends, replacing the many roles occupied by the German on the pitch remains a major challenge.

According to Marca, one of the main challenges linked to the absence of Kroos is the difficulty in finding a real organizer in midfield, a relatively rare profile in the current team.

If players like Valverde or Camavinga have gained influence in the circulation of the ball, the latter excel in more dynamic styles of play and still struggle to impose a certain serenity on the game.

Often, when it comes to bringing calm to the game, eyes naturally turn to Modric. However, the Croatian has been little used lately, leaving his place to Dani Ceballos.

The former Betis player, who never really managed to establish himself in the starting eleven in five seasons at Real Madrid, is having a particularly prolific season this year. Indeed, the shortage of organizing midfielders in the squad allowed the Andalusian player to shine more.

According to Marca, although he does not completely replace Kroos, Ceballos is undoubtedly the player closest to the German’s profile, particularly in his position on the pitch and his role as manager of the game.

Although he suffered from an ankle injury, he showed good form when he was available, which was not lost on manager Ancelotti, who praised his performance in the match against ‘Atalanta in the Champions League: “I really liked Ceballos, he had a great match. »

Dani Ceballos offers Real Madrid a solution of choice since returning from injury (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

In terms of statistics, Dani Ceballos particularly stands out in key areas such as passes made and contacts with the ball. This year, only Modric rivals him.

In terms of passes per game, Ceballos leads with 88.5 passes per 90 minutes, far ahead of Modric (79.1) and Rüdiger (68.5). Of these passes, 9.47 are made in the final third of the pitch, just behind Modric (9.76).

According to statistics given by Marca, Ceballos and Modric are also the leaders in progressive passes, thus allowing offensive arrows to be launched.

In addition to the quantity of passes, the quality of his game is not to be outdone. The Spaniard has the best passing percentage for Real Madrid, with 93.9%. This figure places him at the top among players like Mendy, Rüdiger, Asensio or Tchouaméni, who are more accustomed to simpler and more secure passes.

But that’s not all: Ceballos also showed marked improvement on the defensive side. He is the player with the highest number of interceptions per 90 minutes on the team.

Even if his place in Ancelotti’s starting eleven is not yet guaranteed, Ceballos has finally found his role and is making the most of it, bringing to Real Madrid what it was missing.

Great news for him, for his teammates, and especially for Ancelotti, because the best Ceballos is back precisely when the team needed him most.