In the 56th minute of this evening’s Europa League semi-final between Villarreal and Arsenal, things went from bad to worse for the Gunners as Dani Ceballos was sent off.
Ceballos contested compatriot Dani Parejo for a loose ball in Villarreal’s defensive third, Parejo slid down to get a touch on the ball, and at that point Ceballos’ boot unfortunately stamped into his foot.
The Real Madrid loanee was clearly focused on the ball, but this moment unluckily and harshly caught Ceballos out, as the referee brandished a second yellow card and sent the midfielder off.
Ceballos looked less than impressive with his attempts at defending before Villarreal’s opener, but the marching orders really cement yet another Europa League nightmare for the 24-year-old.
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Pictures from RMC Sport.
Ceballos committed a foul in the first-leg tie against Benfica that led to a free-kick being scored, before later almost resigning the Gunners to being knocked out by gifting away another goal.
That wasn’t all though, it became back-to-back blunders in Europe’s secondary club competition when the loanee fretted on the ball in a dangerous area, leaving Olympiacos to score.
It may well be time to sit Ceballos out for matches in this competition, he was unfortunate tonight but he clearly doesn’t have any luck in the Europa League.
Arsenal, Mikel Arteta and the side’s fans will feel very hard done by after this moment.