Following the arrival of Arsène Wenger in 1996, Arsenal have been a team who pride themselves on playing football 'the right way.'
Highbury and the Emirates have seen a plethora of technicians grace their respective pitches, from Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry to Mesut Ozil and Tomas Rosicky.
Every fan will have their favourite mercurial star of the past, but there is one player who, despite not enjoying the most trophy-laden spell in north London, is universally loved by the support – Santi Cazorla.
The diminutive Spaniard wowed fans in the early to mid-2010s with his sheer brilliance, and while he eventually departed N5, a young academy gem was set to replicate his greatness.
Why Santi Cazorla was loved at Arsenal
Arsenal completed the £16m signing of Cazorla from La Liga outfit Malaga in August 2012, with Wenger telling the media that the then-27-year-old was a "technically gifted" midfielder and that he was going to add "significant quality" to the team – something that would be proven oh so right.
The "unreal" maestro, as former Arsenal midfielder Joe Willock described him on the Premier League YouTube channel, took no time to acclimatise to English football and put in a Man of the Match performance on his debut against Sunderland.
He would end that first season with 12 goals and 14 assists in 49 games, and by the time he reached the end of his Arsenal career, he had 29 goals and 45 assists to his name in just 180 appearances.
Appearances
180
Goals
29
Assists
45
Goal Involvements per Match
0.41
The tricky midfielder was also famed for being incredibly two-footed, with Wenger claiming that this skill was one of many that made "him very dangerous."
While there are plenty of standout moments in the Llanera-born gem's Arsenal career, such as his performance away to Manchester City in 2015, it's probably his free-kick against Hull City in the 2014 FA Cup final that sticks out in the minds of most Gooners as it was the goal that kickstarted their impressive comeback to lift their first trophy since the 2005 FA Cup.
Unfortunately, for as unbelievably talented as Cazorla was, he was beset with injuries and across his six years with the team, he would miss a staggering 164 games for club and country through various problems with his ankles, Achilles and knee.
These consistent injuries took their toll on his magical footballing ability, and while he could still play to a certain level – he's still going now – Cazorla eventually left the club for free in 2018, but he left adored by the supporters and with two FA Cups and two Community Shields to his name.
First Impressions
What did pundits and fans alike think about their new star signing when they arrived? Football FanCast's 'First Impressions' series has everything you need.
It felt like it would be years until the club could field a player as technically gifted as the Spaniard, that is until a young Mexican joined the academy in 2019.
What happened to Marcelo Flores
In July 2019, then-17-year-old Marcelo Flores, a Mexican U16 international, joined Arsenal from Ipswich Town before signing his first professional contract with the club in October the following year.
The Ontario-born gem spent the next couple of years playing for the Gunners' U18 and U23 sides, where he did quite well, racking up 15 goals and six assists in 48 appearances, meaning he averaged a goal involvement every 2.2 games.
Appearances
32
16
Goals
10
5
Assists
5
1
Goal Involvements per Match
0.46
0.37
Flores looked primed to make the leap to first-team football and, with talent scout Jacek Kulig claiming that he had a "very interesting future ahead" and that his "creativity, technique" and "agility" made him a "similar type of player" to "Santi Cazorla", he looked destined for greatness.
With how well the youngster had kicked on since joining the club, it was hard to disagree with Kulig, and when he was sent out on a season-long loan to Spanish second-division side Real Oviedo in July 2022 – the team Cazorla has just joined – the stage looked set for his breakout season in Europe.
However, for whatever reason, the talented youngster just couldn't nail down a spot in the starting XI, and he ended the campaign with just 685 minutes of action in 15 appearances, no goals and one assist to his name.
Upon his return to N5, he spent a few games as a substitute with the U21 team before it was decided that he would be sold to Mexican giants Tigres UANL so that he could reignite his development with regular first-team football away from Europe.
Appearances
15
16
Goals
0
1
Assists
1
0
Goal Involvements per Match
0.06
0.06
Unfortunately, since making the move, the youngster, once compared to Cazorla, has once again struggled to make it into the first team and has been limited to just 276 minutes of action across 15 cameos and one start, in which he has scored a single goal.
Arteta must axe "disappointing" Arsenal dud who earns 5x more than Toney
Cutting their losses could free up some money for the Brentford ace in the summer.
ByJack Salveson HolmesFeb 29, 2024
Ultimately, the 20-year-old still has plenty of time to fulfil the promise that so many saw in him when he was still a teenager, but it looks unlikely that he'll ever quite make it as the next Cazorla.
