Robin van Persie praises Dani Ceballos’ display against Burnley

Former Arsenal and Manchester United striker Robin van Persie has praised the display of midfielder Dani Ceballos during his maiden Premier League start for the Gunners. The Spain international only made a cameo appearance in the season opener but he was handed a full debut against Burnley with Granit Xhaka on the sidelines through an injury.

While he was initially pitted to feature in the number 8 role, Ceballos found himself in the number 10 position in numerous occasions during the game and he made the difference with assists for both of the goals scored by the Gunners. Speaking on BT Sport, Van Persie heaped praise on the midfielder and said that the 23-year-old was by far the best player for the north London giants.

He said: “Ceballos was by far the best player on the pitch. He was making the game, creating, he wanted the ball constantly. He was just a joy to watch. He runs a lot. I think the stats tell you as well that he ran the most of all players, so that tells you that he’s alive, he’s there, he wants to play, he wants to create. He’s just a very positive player who’s having fun, you can see he’s having fun.”

Besides his goalscoring contributions, Ceballos also impressed with the link-up play, ball holding capabilities and tackling, and that capped off a stunning performance in front of the home fans. With the 2-1 win over Burnley, the Gunners have the perfect return after the opening two games of the new season and that stands as their best-ever beginning to any campaign over the past decade.

Next up, they have a tough challenge against Liverpool on the road and any points gathered from the Merseyside trip could be regarded as a boost. The Gunners have not secured a single point at Anfield since January 2016.