Cazorla can help lift gloom

The jokes have been doing the rounds all week.

‘Have you heard that Robin van Persie is going to write a book on his time at Arsenal? It’s got no title.’

‘Robin van Persie almost failed his medical at Manchester United. He had a bad back after carrying the entire Arsenal squad last season.’

They aren’t particularly original, nor particularly funny, but one man who will not be laughing is Santi Cazorla.

The mood around the changing room at the Emirates is one of quiet optimism despite the sale of their captain to Manchester United, and the principal reason for that is a perpetually happy, hyper-active Spaniard, a man who could be the signing of this or any other summer.

When Arsene Wenger took advantage of Malaga’s financial woes to sign attacking midfielder Cazorla for a fee of around £15 million, there was a fair amount of disbelief within the football world. The 27-year-old has long been recognised as the best player in Spain outside the big two of Real Madrid and Barcelona, and that there was no real competition for his signature was extraordinary.

The departure of van Persie was pre-ordained by that stage, with only the fee to be agreed. Arsenal knew they needed a marquee name to offset the disappointment of losing their captain, top scorer and talisman — and turned to Cazorla.

After 10 days of training with him, Arsenal’s players speak in reverential tones about their new team-mate. They still haven’t worked out which is his stronger foot. They still haven’t found out how to stop his free-kicks. They still aren’t quite sure how he manages to make his team-mates appear to be better players than they actually are. What they do know is that Cazorla is the real deal, despite standing at just 5ft 6in tall.

It is the latest step on an unusual journey for a man whose talent has long been noted in Spain. A product of the same Real Oviedo Academy as Juan Mata, Cazorla’s central midfield combination with Marcos Senna was the main reason why Villarreal punched so far above their weight in La Liga.

When he left last summer, the club fell apart. With Cazorla enticed by Malaga’s new money and striker Guiseppe Rossi injured, Villarreal went from a Champions League spot to relegation in one season.

Malaga, in contrast, finished in the Champions League spots before the money ran out to make Cazorla’s departure a necessity if wages were to be paid.

And those that say Cazorla has no experience of winning titles have conveniently ignored his international career.

To win 46 international caps in this Spain side is a real achievement in itself, and Cazorla was part of the European Championship winning squads of 2008 and 2012, although he missed the 2010 World Cup due to injury.

The life and soul of the dressing room, Cazorla’s team-mates adore him. Cesc Fabregas, the man he is ultimately replacing at Arsenal, called him a ‘top guy and special player’.

Mikel Arteta, who was quietly influential behind the scenes as he convinced Cazorla to move, was even more effusive in his praise.

“Technically he is very gifted, he can play wide in both positions and through the middle as well,’’ said the club’s new vice-captain.

“He is tricky and has two good feet — in fact I could not say whether he is right or left-footed. He will bring us good experience and something different. He will be a good addition to the team.

“I am convinced he will [make a big impact]. The way that we play at Arsenal really suits his qualities and hopefully he will be very successful.”

He should be. Cazorla completed 86% of his passes last season and was directly involved in 23.9% of Malaga’s goals.

He scored nine times, four of them from direct free-kicks — including a last-minute stunner at the Bernabeu.

His vision, intelligence of passing and good nature have already convinced Arsenal’s players that they can cope without van Persie.

Van Persie scores goals; Cazorla creates them. The Dutchman was fundamental to everything that Arsenal did last season, and the Spaniard will fulfil the same role. They are different players who occupy different positions, but the early signs are encouraging; Cazorla will make the loss of van Persie easier to cope with than Arsenal might have imagined.