The battle between Real Madrid and Barcelona is not only reserved to the pitch and El Clasico, it extends to the players they chase, too.

If you hadn't heard of the name Dani Ceballos before the Under-21 European Championships in Poland, you certainly will have now.

The 20-year-old midfielder impressed throughout the finals for his native Spain and wowed fans with his agility and skill as he glided through rival midfields.

Ceballos was a standout performer for Betis last term and has been since making his first team debut aged 17 back in 2014.

But after his stellar display this summer, it was clear that the skillful playmaker was destined for bigger things and they don't come much bigger than Real Madrid or Barcelona.

So why did he choose Real over Barca?

Well, a lot of it has to do with how long Madrid had been courting the youngster and the perception that Barca only then took an interest because their rivals had.

Barcelona's interest only came about because Ceballos was offered to them in the course of the negotiations for Cristian Tello to move the other way. Prior to that, they had never enquired in the young talent.

Betis alerted Barca to Real's interest in the man who won Player of the Tournament at the Under-21 European Championships, but, as recently as a few months ago, Ceballos was seen as too immature by the Barcelona brass and therefore not in their plans.

When the Catalan side realised that Ceballos was slipping through their grasps and Real were closing in on a deal, president Josep Maria Bartomeu himself called the player to try and persuade him in their direction.

But, it was too little too late from Nou Camp officials as Madrid had already made all the right noises to secure his services.

Given that Barca have reportedly been looking for a heir to Andreas Iniesta's throne and their vehement pursuit of Marco Veratti this summer, one would have thought an outstanding Spanish talent for £16 million would have been attractive too them.

Instead, Real will add Ceballos to their ridiculous young midfield core of Marcos Llorente and Marcos Asensio. The future looks very bright indeed.