You’d better watch out, says Santi

“Santi Cazorla smiles” is not exactly news. Team-mates at Villarreal declared him “our Ronaldinho” because of his temperament as much as his talent, friends say his enthusiasm is infectious and, while he chats, his fellow Spaniard, asturiano and Londoner Juan Mata cannot resist approaching to share a joke.

As the Arsenal player puts it: “I like to smile. I try to bring happiness on and off the pitch. I don’t understand how you can play football without joy.” Grinning is pretty much Cazorla’s default setting. But even for him this is a big one.

“I was,” he laughs, “like a little kid.” He is talking, of course, about the moment that seemed to change everything, the day Arsenal signed Mesut Ozil. “I was injured, so it was a few more days before I had the chance to train with him,” Cazorla says. “I was getting really excited. A great player’s coming and one you know you’re going to fit with, enjoy playing with. I was a fan, looking forward to it.