“He entertained me with his style of football throughout the 90 mins. I wish I played with him”- Arsenal Ex player Santi Cazorla reveals ONE Arsenal player he was excited to see play Vs Ipswich
“He entertained me with his style of football throughout the 90 mins. I wish I played with him”- Arsenal Ex player Santi Cazorla reveals ONE Arsenal player he was excited to see play Vs Ipswich
Santi Cazorla reveals the one Arsenal player he was excited to see play vs Ipswich
Former Arsenal star Santi Cazorla has revealed the one current player at the club who he was excited to watch play against Ipswich Town.
Former Arsenal player Santi Cazorla has revealed the player who he was most excited to see play after returning to the Emirates Stadium for the first time since leaving the club in 2018.
Santi Cazorla was part of legendary manager Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal squad for six years, from 2012, following his £10m (€12m) arrival from La Liga side Malaga who, at the time, were enduring financial peril.
The Spanish midfielder made his long-awaited return to the Emirates Stadium on Friday, 27 December as Arsenal took on relegation strugglers Ipswich Town in a Premier League game which has big consequences at both ends of the league table.
Speaking to Amazon Prime Video ahead of the Gunners’ game against the Tractor Boys, the now-40-year-old was asked who he was most excited to see play in the current team – and the Spaniard had a clear player in mind, saying: “It’s difficult to choose one! I love to see Martin Ødegaard because I played against him in Spain. Gabriel Jesus, [Kai] Havertz — we have a lot of good players.”
Reacting to Cazorla’s comments, one Arsenal fan reflected on his time with the club, and questioned what could have been were it not for his injury during the 2016/17 campaign, saying: “Still to this day I still think how different that season 2016/17 would have looked if Santi had not got injured. Just Imagine him with Laca [Alexandre Lacazette] and Auba [Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang],” on X (formerly Twitter).
During his 180 Arsenal appearances across all competitions, Cazorla became a fan favourite not just for his exceptional output on the pitch, but also for his exemplary character both on and off the pitch.
The Gunners’ boss, Mikel Arteta, reflected on this ahead of the game, and said: “He’s one of the best players that I have played with. But then it’s also about the person, and he’s a very special character. He was loved by everybody in the dressing room, [and everybody] at the club. Even without speaking English, he was loved by all the crowd, which is a compliment of him.”
