Arnaut Danjuma: ‘It’s fair and factual to say I’m among the best wingers in the world’

“If we look at what I’ve done this season it’s quite fair and factual to say I’m among the best wingers in the world,” Arnaut Danjuma says after being asked if his ambition is to become one of the greatest players in the world. It is a bold response from the Villarreal attacker and at first it seems his self-belief is about to veer into ill-advised brashness, setting him up for a fall before he faces Bayern Munich in the last eight of the Champions League on Wednesday.

The thing about Danjuma, though, is that is he just straightforward. The numbers side with the Netherlands international, who has 14 goals in 32 appearances for club and country this season, and yet there is no hint of arrogance from the 25-year-old. What comes across instead is Danjuma’s hunger. He thinks deeply about how to take his game to the next level, explaining how the chance to play for Unai Emery played a major role in his decision to join Villarreal last summer, and he knows his development is far from finished.

“To the best you need to aim for more, and there’s so much I still want to achieve,” the former Bournemouth winger says. “I’ve made mistakes so there’s so much for me to develop. I think I’m in a good place at the moment – 25, at Villarreal, playing in the Champions League. We’ve got a good team and La Liga is an amazing league. But I’m not done yet. It begins with believing in yourself.”

Confidence is not something lacking in Danjuma, whose performances have played a big part in Villarreal’s latest European adventure. He scored twice when Emery’s side reached the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 3-2 away win over Atalanta in December. He was man of the match when Villarreal lost undeservedly to Manchester United at Old