Santi Cazorla

Santiago "Santi" Cazorla González (born 13 December 1984) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Segunda División club Real Oviedo.

A former Spanish international, Cazorla operates primarily as an attacking midfielder, but also plays as a winger, central midfielder or as a deep-lying playmaker.

Born in Llanera, Asturias, Cazorla started playing club football for local team Real Oviedo, being acquired by Villarreal six months before turning 18, as his previous club, immersed in a deep financial crisis, suffered two relegations at the end of the 2002–03 season which saw it land in Tercera División.

Cazorla began his professional career at Villarreal in 2003 after impressing as a youngster with Oviedo, his hometown club.

He continued his development at Villarreal before a short spell at partner club, Recreativo de Huelva.

Cazorla then progressed through the reserve side, making his debut with the first team on 30 November 2003 in a 1–0 La Liga win at Deportivo de La Coruña, playing one minute in place of Roger, making one more appearance off the bench over the season.

He scored his first goal in a 3–0 win at Odense Boldklub in the following summer's UEFA Intertoto Cup, which the Yellow Submarine eventually won.

Established in the main squad in the 2004–05 campaign, Cazorla scored four goals in a run to the quarter-finals of the season's UEFA Cup.

On 1 May 2005, given an opportunity due to Juan Román Riquelme's suspension, he scored his first league goal in a 4–0 win over Getafe at El Madrigal, and followed it a week later with a strike in a 2–0 victory at Málaga.

After contributing to an eventual fourth-place finish, he also made two goalless appearances in the following season's UEFA Champions League, where Villarreal were semi-finalists.

He was Recreativo Huelva's standout player in the 2006–07 La Liga season, contributing to their top-ten finish and being awarded Spain's Footballer of the Year.

He returned to Villarreal for €1.2 million the following season, becoming a key contributor to the side, regularly being named in the La Liga Team of the Season.

On 7 July 2006, newly promoted Recreativo de Huelva signed Cazorla for €600,000 on a four-year deal, with a clause in his contract whereby he could return to Villarreal (for €1.2 million), going on to score in his official debut, a 1–1 home draw with Mallorca, on 27 August.

The following 22 April, he dedicated a goal to his father, José Manuel, who had died recently, in a 4–2 home win against Racing de Santander; in the penultimate fixture on 10 June, he struck twice in a 5–2 win at Deportivo de La Coruña.

His performances helped the Andalusians finish eighth, and he was named Spain's Player of the Year according to Don Balón, a member of European Sports Magazines, after topping its rating list.

The following year, Villarreal took advantage of the clause in Cazorla's contract and bought him back, as the team believed he had proven himself.

In his first season in his second spell, he was instrumental in Villarreal's final runner-up placing, providing assists for Nihat Kahveci and Giuseppe Rossi and netting five goals himself.

Cazorla made his senior debut for Spain in a victory against Peru in May 2008, and was a semi-regular participant 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 friendly match against Chile, and went on to amass 81 appearances and 15 goals for the national side.

On 26 August 2008, Cazorla announced that Real Madrid were interested in signing him.

He then went on to cause a stir in the media by rejecting the team, announcing that, "There are many other things in football besides Real Madrid. It's clear that it is possible to say 'no' to them, there is no doubt that they are a great team, but I also feel very satisfied and valued at my club."

He added, "I hope I can continue growing at Villarreal because I am young and I’m only starting off with the national team."

During a league game against Almería in early April 2009, Cazorla injured his right fibula after suffering a challenge from two opponents.

He missed several games but el Submarino Amarillo still managed to qualify for the Europa League, as the player made his comeback earlier than expected in the side's final match, a 3–2 win at Mallorca, and finished the league campaign with a career-high eight goals.

Cazorla struggled heavily with injury in the 2009–10 season, going on to miss the 2010 World Cup.

He returned to full fitness in the following campaign, only missing one game and scoring five times as Villarreal finished fourth and qualified to the Champions League.

In 2011, Cazorla moved to 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, Cazorla 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.

On 26 July 2011, Cazorla left Villarreal and returned to Andalusia to join high-spending Málaga for a fee of €21 million.

He scored on his official debut on 28 August, netting from a superbly taken free kick in a 1–2 away loss against neighbouring Sevilla.

On 12 September, he scored a brace and gave an assist in another local derby, a 4–0 home win against Granada, and netted his fourth in only four games nine days later – again from a free kick – in a 1–0 home success over Athletic Bilbao.

On 18 March 2012, Cazorla scored from an injury-time free kick in a 1–1 away draw against Real Madrid, and finished the season as the team's second top scorer (only behind Salomón Rondón) as Málaga finished fourth and qualified for the Champions League for the first time in the club's history.

On 7 August 2012, it was officially announced that Cazorla had signed a long-term deal with Premier League club Arsenal, worth £10 million.

He became Arsène Wenger's third major signing of the summer after the arrivals of German attacker Lukas Podolski and French striker Olivier Giroud.

Cazorla picked up the man of the match award on his debut for the club against Sunderland.

He scored his first Arsenal goal in a 2–0 win against Liverpool at Anfield and scored his first hat-trick for the club against Reading, a performance that saw him pick up another man of the match award.

Cazorla was integral in ending the club's nine-year trophy drought, scoring a crucial free-kick en route to winning the FA Cup final in 2014.

Injuries plagued his latter years with Arsenal.

In 2018, Cazorla returned to Villarreal; in his two seasons, he recorded his highest appearance, league goals and assist count since 2015.

In 2020, he signed for Qatari club Al Sadd before returning to his childhood club Oviedo in 2023.