Granit Xhaka

[DiamondGooner]

He needs to help Torreia out more, as said above Lucas is doing the job of at least two men.

[Losmeister]

had that one lovely pass, otherwise slow, easy, predictable passes, some crappy giveaways, not v good defensively

[arsenalpan]

Slowly but surely he's improving game by game under Emery.

A few iffy moments today but overall he put in a solid performance.

are you sure you watched the whole game?

[SuperJackyWilshere]

Yes?

[thebigbangtheo]

It was widely accepted that Vinny Jones was not a very talented footballer when measured by skill and technique, nor was he deemed cultured or pleasing on the eye given how often agricultural was used as an adjective.

However, he was often the first name on the team sheet for some of the clubs he played for and valued most by his managers, not so much for what he had to offer per se, but for what he got the other 10 players to do.

His own game rating may only have warranted a 5 but he made sure that the others put in 7's and 8's which in turn could give platform for someone to put in a 9. His spells at Wimbledon, Leeds and Sheffield epitomised this in particular and why he more than the likes of Strachan or Speed got Leeds promoted back to the top table and gave them motion to ultimately win the league with Cantona finishing off the job.

Granit Xhaka is no mad dog in the mould of Jones by any stretch of the imagination. However, I am inclined to think that he's a similarly positive influence in the dressing room and squad overall, respected and liked throughout the club and nobody's mug.

So far he has only given us glimpses of the talent and form he displayed at Monchengladbach or Basle before that which prompted the Germans to snap him up.

The clamour for the coach to dispense with his services in favour of Guendouzi to partner Torreira is understandable, but in the first instance, isn't it the remit of the coach to do just that and get the talent displayed on the training ground back to the forefront and on the pitch?

Furthermore, in the coach being successful in this effort, are we not better off if we have three players showing that they can effectively fill the role of the two in front of the defense? Would that not intensify competition and in turn make all three raise their game? Christ, the thought of el torrito finding a couple more gears puts me in mind of the Tasmanian Devil from the Looney tunes cartoons (young 'uns will have to google it). And lets not forget that we are the undisputed champions of injuries to crucial or in-form players at the most damaging time possible.

If Xhaka was to be taken out of the starting XI at any point in the near future, is it likely that he would react negatively and beyond what is reasonable because he doesn't think he's been given a fair and equal opportunity? Or would he be more inclined to do the extra training thing and work even harder to produce his best? That's a win win for the coach in my book.

Either way, the by product would be douzi now having to step up to the plate and turn that massive potential into proven quality. The same applies to both Maitland-Niles and Elnenny.

To conclude the point I'm trying to make, whilst understandable, what a lot of fans often fail to appreciate is that the best team is not always as simple as the best eleven players.

[EliteKiller]

It was widely accepted that Vinny Jones was not a very talented footballer when measured by skill and technique, nor was he deemed cultured or pleasing on the eye given how often agricultural was used as an adjective.

However, he was often the first name on the team sheet for some of the teams he played for and valued most by his managers, not so much for what he had to offer per se, but for what he got the other 10 players to do.

His own game rating may only have warranted a 5 but he made sure that the others put in 7's and 8's which in turn could give platform for someone to put in a 9. His spells at Wimbledon, Leeds and Sheffield epitomised this in particular and why he more than the likes of Strachan or Speed got Leeds promoted back to the top table and gave them motion to ultimately win the league with Cantona finishing off the job.

Granit Xhaka is no mad dog in the mould of Jones by any stretch of the imagination. However, I am inclined to think that he's a similarly positive influence in the dressing room and squad overall, respected and liked throughout the club and nobody's mug.

So far he has only given us glimpses of the talent and form he displayed at Monchengladbach or Basle before that which prompted the Germans to snap him up.

The clamour for the coach to dispense with his services in favour of Guendouzi to partner Torreira is understandable, but in the first instance, isn't it the remit of the coach to do just that and get the talent displayed on the training ground back to the forefront and on the pitch?

Furthermore, in the coach being successful in this effort, are we not better off if we have three players showing that they can effectively fill the role of the two in front of the defense? Would that not intensify competition and in turn make all three raise their game? Christ, the thought of el torrito finding a couple more gears puts me in mind of the Tasmanian Devil from the Looney tunes cartoons (young 'uns will have to google it). And lets not forget that we are the undisputed champions of injuries to crucial or in-form players at the most damaging time possible.

If Xhaka was to be taken out of the starting XI at any point in the near future, is it likely that he would react negatively and beyond what is reasonable because he doesn't think he's been given a fair and equal opportunity? Or would he be more inclined to do the extra training thing and work even harder to produce his best? That's a win win for the coach in my book.

Either way, the by product would be douzi now having to step up to the plate and turn that massive potential into proven quality. The same applies to both Maitland-Niles and Elnenny.

To conclude the point I'm trying to make, whilst understandable, what a lot of fans often fail to appreciate is that the best team is not always as simple as the best eleven players.

Excellent post .... never a comparison I would have thought off but it entirely gets the message across .... having watched Xhaka lift a pretty ordinary Swiss team to achieve some great results ... I'm pretty sure this is what Emery is hoping for and why he persists with playing him .... to me it's no surprise that players around him are starting to at last show the talent that we've know for years that they possessed ....

[Pudpop]

This guy's defending is preventing him from even having a chance at being a decent player. He's either invisible defensively or he's fouling someone.

[BS221B]

He is by far the worst player ive watched in Emirates era and worth to mention that i have survived likes Chamakh and Andre Santos.

[Arsenal Tone]

I thought he was having a good game

[Pudpop]

I thought he was having a good game

He was for the first half hour. Last fifteen minutes of the half and now the first ten of this half he's been shocking

Matteo for Xhaka has to happen

[Arsenal Tone]

He's going to get sent off now i reckon

[Ach]

Xhaka at cb?

[Arsenal Tone]

[emoji102]

[Pudpop]

Really don't understand putting him at LB?

Maybe Lichsteiner was injured???

[Sims]

Really don't understand putting him at LB?

Maybe Lichsteiner was injured???

I think Laca is more suited to left back than Xhaka lmao