Now you don’t see him. Now you do.
Santi Cazorla has enchanted fans and players throughout his career, his sorcery casting a spell, so it was perhaps fitting that the 33-year-old midfielder received a magical welcome by his new club Villarreal.
The La Liga outfit took the player unveil to another level when Cazorla was introduced to the fans at the Estadio de la Ceramica Thursday.
Hey presto! The former Arsenal man appeared from thin air inside a glass tube.
Normally, new arrivals will wave to the fans, or perform keepy-ups, but Cazorla was the magic trick, to the delight of the thousands of supporters who had gathered to see the club’s new signing.
Cazorla joins Villarreal, the club where his professional career began, after six years in London with English Premier League club Arsenal.
The midfielder has endured a difficult time after an ankle injury in 2016 led to eight operations, gangrene and a skin graft.
Doctors had told the Spaniard that he would not play again but his recovery has been as magical as his unveiling.
“All the suffering has been worth it for this moment alone,” Cazorla said after he had been magically beamed onto the pitch.
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He has signed an initial one-year deal and this will be his third spell with the Spanish club.
“I’m grateful to Villarreal, not just for how they opened the doors to me when I was 18, but for their unconditional support through difficult moments and for re-opening the doors to me [now],” Cazorla added.
