Come this summer transfer window and Arteta will look to make some chopping and changes to his squad and will look to buy some new players to his side. But for that to happen, Arteta will look to make some room in his squad by selling off some of his existing squad players, and one such player who is most likely to leave the Gunners is the 28-year old Granit Xhaka.
Granit Xhaka is now looking very close to a move to Serie A side AS Roma for a price of £17.2 million, which also includes bonuses.
His performance for Arsenal
Granit Xhaka first signed for Arsenal on 26th May, 2016 from the German side Borussia Monchengladbach under Arsene Wenger. Ever since then, he has played for the Gunners for five seasons and have made a total of 220 appearances for the club, and have scored a total of 13 goals, and has helped the Gunners to win two FA Cups under his time.
He established himself as a regular starter in the midfield position playing as a defensive midfielder under every manager that he played under, whether be Arsene Wenger, Unai Emery, or under the current manager Mikel Arteta. He was an excellent presence on the field and was seen as the leader in the midfield for Arsenal for five seasons that he played in.
As for Arsenal, it will be a bit tough for them to replace a strong presence as Xhaka as for the services he has rendered for the club not only as a player but also as a team and club’s spokesperson. But, if they could bring a good replacement for him, the fans will quickly forget about Xhaka as he was not a fan favourite as fans wanted and hoped too high from him which he wasn’t able to deliver and he sometimes saw himself crippled from all that pressure and make some costly mistakes during his time which would cost him and his team the game.
What he can offer to ‘the Special One’
After playing in North London for the last five years, the 28-year old Swiss international have made his interests clear of moving out of Gunners and play in a different league other than Premier League.
For the upcoming season, AS Roma have sacked their previous manager Paulo Fonseca and has appointed Jose Mourinho as their new manager ahead of their new season in Serie A. And as for Mourinho, he only has praises for the experienced Swiss midfielder as he knows how important player Xhaka is and what he can bring to the table as a player. He has publicly praised the 28-year old and have made a few attempts of signing him.
Two years ago, during a press conference, Jose said; “Xhaka is the main man in the entire Arsenal midfield, you can’t see it unless I lend you one of my eyes.” He then continued by saying; “Without him, Arsenal is lost. He is a leader. Remember, mistakes are made by humans.”
But it’s just not one-sided as the admiration is mutual as Xhaka also has a lot of respect and praises for one of the most decorated managers in Football and is very much excited by the prospect of playing under new manager Jose Mourinho and is looking forward for his growth as a player under ‘the Special One’.
