Real Madrid star set an 8-year La Liga benchmark with performance vs Atlético | OneFootball

A head-turning statistic, highlighting the excellence of one member of Real Madrid’s midfield ranks in the club’s meeting with Atlético, has come to the fore online.

The player in question? Dani Ceballos.

Midfielder Ceballos was for his part in from the off once more on Saturday night, as Carlo Ancelotti’s Real welcomed Atlético to the Santiago Bernabéu for a top-of-the-table La Liga clash.

And, en route to an eventual 1-1 stalemate between the sides, the former Arsenal man shone bright from his berth in the middle of the park.

A consistent source of excellence in and out of possession alike, Ceballos again proved himself more than worthy of a place in Los Blancos’ starting XI.

So much so that the 28-year-old managed to secure for himself a piece of recent Spanish football history.

As revealed by statisticians Squawka, after finding his man with all but one of his 102 passes against Atlético, Ceballos became the first player since at least the 2017/18 season to manage a 99% completion percentage whilst attempting at least 100 passes in a single La Liga fixture.

Conor Laird – GSFN