On the morning of January 20th, Real Madrid staged a comeback victory against Las Palmas at the Bernabeu Stadium. Silva scored first for Las Palmas, while Real Madrid's superstar Mbappe scored twice, Rodrigo contributed with one goal, one assist, and creating a penalty, and Diaz also found the net. Ramirez from Las Palmas was sent off for kicking Vasquez, and Real Madrid's victory allowed them to surpass Atletico Madrid by two points, rising to the top of La Liga, seven points ahead of third-placed Barcelona. At the same time, Real Madrid's 4-1 win revealed a midfield maestro! Ancelotti's disciple excelled in both attack and defense, shining brightly, and is expected to succeed Modric.
In this match, several Real Madrid players stood out, such as Mbappe and Rodrigo on the attacking line. The former was involved in all four of Real Madrid's goals, while the latter created three. Despite Vinicius' absence, Real Madrid's attacking power remained strong. Additionally, Real Madrid had an unexpected gain in this game, with midfielder Ceballos delivering a phenomenal performance.
Ceballos partnered with Valverde as the double pivot in midfield, playing a comprehensive role covering the front, middle, and back areas of the field. He started and played for 83 minutes before being substituted, during which the Spanish midfielder made three key passes, completed one dribble, and achieved a passing accuracy of 92%. With age and accumulated match experience, Ceballos, who used to be considered weak in physical confrontations, now plays aggressively. In this match, he showed great tenacity.
Ceballos completed the most tackles (7) and interceptions (6) in the game, becoming the first midfielder in Europe's top five leagues this season to achieve both feats in a single match. Moreover, he successfully engaged in all 12 of his duels in this match, also a first among midfielders in Europe's top leagues this season. Ceballos received a post-match rating of 8.8, second only to Mbappe's 10 and Rodrigo's 9.5 among the players from both teams.
Ceballos was once a prodigy, helping Spain win the European Under-21 Championship and being named the tournament's MVP, demonstrating his immense talent. However, his development in recent years has not been smooth, falling short of expectations. Fortunately, Real Madrid did not give up on Ceballos, and the player has become increasingly adept under Ancelotti's guidance. Modric was once labeled a flop when he first joined Real Madrid but is now a club legend. Currently 28 years old and in the prime of his career, Ceballos still has a bright future ahead of him.
Real Madrid's midfield is filled with workhorses, making Ceballos, an organizing midfielder, relatively rare. With Modric, aged 39, nearing the end of his time at Real Madrid, the club can focus on nurturing Ceballos to take charge of the team's midfield.