Granit Xhaka

[Est83]

Depressing.

Needs to go ASAP.

[Salibatelli]

He’s been Arteta’s go to guy, Arteta rates him highly, so much so he turned down an offer and gave him a new contract last summer.

Can’t see him leaving unless he wants to or Arteta goes.

[Est83]

We play better with him in the team, but f**k me, that says so much about the lack of quality in our midfield. No idea what any manager sees in him.

If he's relegated to the bench with better midfielders brought in, surely he'll want to leave.

[theHotHead]

Well the stats don't bear that out, I know stats can be subjective.

Last season we got 1.77 points per game with him in the team, when he was absent it rose to 1.81. The season before last the PPG was the same with and without him in the team, 1.71.

[swipe right]

Unfortunately he’s the only one who can play a forward ball from deep midfield. We went from having players like Cesc, Cazorla, Ramsey, Wilshere and even Arteta to this idiot.

[Arsenal Tone]

https://twitter.com/Ekremkonur/status/1 ... dPTdw&s=19

[elkanofan]

https://twitter.com/Ekremkonur/status/1536240586893561856?t=laryGKewTlODSdAJqdPTdw&s=19

I will start the plane. While i domt hate Xhaka like so many others do, we need to move on from him.

[DiamondGooner]

No way Arteta opts for him to leave.

Unless he asks to leave but I can't see why he'd do that for Leverkussen?

[Highbury Hillbilly]

https://twitter.com/Ekremkonur/status/1536240586893561856?t=laryGKewTlODSdAJqdPTdw&s=19

We're not going to let him go on loan. He is Arteta's right hand man on the pitch.

Frankly, I don't ever see us selling him unless we absolutely have to in order to plug financial gaps. He is crucial to the way we play, for better or worse.

[Reiss]

Roma are signing Matic so they won't be interested.

What a major f*ck up it was to keep this muppet for a measly 2.5m. We should have just gotten rid of him last summer although Roma were cheeky b*stards saying they don't have money then splashing 40m on Tammy Abraham a few weeks later.

[Angelito]

Roma are signing Matic so they won't be interested.

What a major f*ck up it was to keep this muppet for a measly 2.5m. We should have just gotten rid of him last summer although Roma were cheeky b*stards saying they don't have money then splashing 40m on Tammy Abraham a few weeks later.

How is it a, "major f**k up," when he's the manager's lieutenant, and the second name on the team-sheet after Saka?

Xhaka slammed the entire team after the Newcastle loss. He questioned the mentality of the players. Did we hear anything from the media? No, we didn't. He's the teacher's pet.

Xhaka wanted to leave, twice. Both instances, the manager convinced/compelled him to stay.

Next season, Xhaka will be starting majority of the games if fitness doesn't pose an issue. That's not down to him. It's part of the process.

[Salibatelli]

I said it before, Xhaka is going nowhere, as above he’s Arteta’s go to guy, he’ll be here as long as he wants to be.

[KG3]

I used to be one of the Xhaka haters mainly due to how much of a downgrade he was on Cazrola but that’s not his fault, he’s actually a good player in the right system when used right.

He’s fitness record is amazing, turns up in big games and one of the few leaders we have. He’s certainly worth keeping we just need to add quality competition for him.

The way i see it ideally someone like Tielemans is perfect, we can use him for Tielemans again defensive deep block sides, Whereas Xhaka is more ideal when it comes to playing again attacking sides to support Partey defensively and distribute the ball for counterattacks.

[Est83]

His most valuable asset, going by what's been said about him, is purely his attitude around the training ground. Apparently players see him as a bit of a middle man between them and the manager sometimes. I think that's important, especially with such a young squad.

On the pitch, I don't see anything, I really don't. I think his attributes are objectively solid; I know he can spray long balls, I know he's always fit, I know he can graft, I know he's physical, I know he's committed. But he never fills the role he's supposed to, not to any effect at least.

Partey can pivot, when fit and on form (so hardly ever), he's not just physically dominant, but is also progressive, quick in transition, and drives the ball forward. Its not his main attribute, but it sure as hell stands out when he does it as no one else seems capable. When next to Xhaka, we've been lead to believe that Xhaka would take on more attacking responsibilities, and show us those defence splitting passes between the lines from a deep - or even a more advanced - position. The sort of okays he makes for Switzerland... do we see them? No, never.

When he's with younger players and is less protected (being without Partey) we see him in a more defensive role. Outside of red cards and giving away free kicks in dangerous areas (he's a liability!) we also don't see him do anything when dropping deep to collect the ball from defence... he immediately goes for the sideways pass.

I just don't see what he brings other than presence and physicality, which I can't knock (other than the red cards). But with the ball, what does he do?

[Est83]

But saying that... he'd be solid back up, and certainly someone worth keeping in the background.