Former Arsenal midfielder has said that it felt special to be playing top-level football again after making his comeback after 21 months without playing.
Cazorla, who had skin removed from his forearm and grafted on to his leg after undergoing eight operations on a persistent ankle injury, was told by doctors he would be lucky to walk properly again, let alone return to playing professionally.
“To feel like a footballer again is something very special,” Cazorla said after returning to the pitch on Tuesday.
He came on as a second-half substitute for Villarreal in a pre-season friendly against Hercules, 636 days after his last outing in October 2016. Following an extensive rehabilitation process, the 33-year-old last month re-joined former club Villarreal on a trial basis after being released by Arsenal.
The warmth of everyone during this period is something that will stay with me forever,” he told the Spanish Liga club’s official website.
Cazorla said he was determined to make the most of his second chance, adding: “Sometimes I can ask too much of myself and I don’t enjoy things. I’ve returned to training with my team mates and played a game at a good level. For me this was unthinkable 20 months ago. I’m just focused on getting 100 percent fit and doing what I love to do: playing football.
Cazorla operates primarily as an attacking midfielder, but can also play as a winger, central midfielder or as a deep-lying playmaker.
Cazorla began his professional career at Villarreal in 2003 after impressing as a youngster with his hometown club, Real Oviedo. He continued his development at Villarreal before a short spell at partner club, Recreativo de Huelva. After becoming the club’s standout player in the 2006–07 La Liga season, contributing to their top-ten finish and being awarded Spanish Footballer of the Year, Cazorla returned to Villarreal for €1.2 million the following season. He then firmly established himself as a key contributor to the side, regularly being named in the La LigaTeam of the Season. In 2011, following five fruitful seasons on the Spanish coast, he moved to fellow La Liga side Málaga in a club-record €21 million deal, where he gained a reputation for his speed, shooting accuracy, capacity to change the rhythm of gameplay, and excellent close control.
After the 2011–12 season, coupled with Málaga’s perilous financial situation, he moved to Premier League side Arsenal for a fee of £10 million, where he became a core component to the team in his first year at the club, registering thirteen assists, after which he was voted Arsenal Player of the Season, as well as becoming ranked one of the best footballers in Europe by Bloomberg.[4] Cazorla was also integral in ending the club’s nine-year trophy drought, scoring a crucial free-kick en route to winning the FA Cup in 2014. Injuries plagued his latter years in England, and he returned to Villarreal on a free transfer in 2018.
Cazorla made his senior debut for Spain in a victory against Peru in May 2008,[5] and became a regular in the nation’s triumphs at UEFA Euro 2008 and Euro 2012, as well as featuring at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He scored his first international goal in a friendlymatch against Chile, and has amassed seventy-seven appearances and fourteen goals for the national side.
Cazorla operates primarily as an attacking midfielder, but can also play as a winger, central midfielder or as a deep-lying playmaker.
Cazorla began his professional career at Villarreal in 2003 after impressing as a youngster with his hometown club, Real Oviedo. He continued his development at Villarreal before a short spell at partner club, Recreativo de Huelva. After becoming the club’s standout player in the 2006–07 La Liga season, contributing to their top-ten finish and being awarded Spanish Footballer of the Year, Cazorla returned to Villarreal for €1.2 million the following season. He then firmly established himself as a key contributor to the side, regularly being named in the La LigaTeam of the Season. In 2011, following five fruitful seasons on the Spanish coast, he moved to fellow La Liga side Málaga in a club-record €21 million deal, where he gained a reputation for his speed, shooting accuracy, capacity to change the rhythm of gameplay, and excellent close control.
After the 2011–12 season, coupled with Málaga’s perilous financial situation, he moved to Premier League side Arsenal for a fee of £10 million, where he became a core component to the team in his first year at the club, registering thirteen assists, after which he was voted Arsenal Player of the Season, as well as becoming ranked one of the best footballers in Europe by Bloomberg. Cazorla was also integral in ending the club’s nine-year trophy drought, scoring a crucial free-kick en route to winning the FA Cup in 2014. Injuries plagued his latter years in England, and he returned to Villarreal on a free transfer in 2018.
Cazorla made his senior debut for Spain in a victory against Peru in May 2008,[5] and became a regular in the nation’s triumphs at UEFA Euro 2008 and Euro 2012, as well as featuring at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He scored his first international goal in a friendlymatch against Chile, and has amassed seventy-seven appearances and fourteen goals for the national side.