Granit Xhaka: 2019/20 Performances

[Artisan]

Hasn't even had one game in charge and Arteta already has his first strike. Blimey.

 

[Tir Na Nog]

Our issues in midfield are way more due to structure than anything else. Often times we've just got no options in terms of passing so either have to pass backwards or try and incredible high risk pass which could end with us losing the ball in an area where we can be punished.

Xhaka has his flaws and weaknesses, under the last two managers there wasn't a lot done to rely hide those weaknesses and focus on his strengths, hopefully under Arteta if he does persist with Xhaka he can find a way to use Xhaka in the right way. Give up plenty of passing options, don't allow him to receive the ball in an area where he'll not be able to pick out a pass and ensure we've got the right setup to combat counter-attacks more efficiently. With all this there'll be less focus on Xhaka.

He's got way more upside than either Torreira or Guendouzi when it comes to utilising possession, which is what Arteta really wants above all else. It's no wonder Arteta would favour someone with Xhaka's attributes over a purely destructive player in Torreira and I'm sorry to say this but a headless chicken (who makes far more mistakes on average than Xhaka) in Guendouzi as his number 6.

Maybe just maybe Xhaka is someone who requires coaching in order to get the best out of him and he just wasn't receiving enough of it under either Wenger or Emery, not like he was under Favre. Wenger being more of a manager who encourages players to use their intelligence and individual skill as opposed to having a particular structure which can negate a players' weaknesses and Emery, well we all know the issues with his management especially with his limited English.

 

[Tir Na Nog]

And BTW, none of that is saying that I don't want us to upgrade on Xhaka, it's just that he's our best option, no matter how much people want to kid themselves otherwise.

 

[pigge]

Not a fan of xhaka during His time here. I, like arteta, think he should get a new chance with artetas style.

 

[Mrs Bergkamp]

He said: “When I was going from Arsenal to City to start coaching in 2016 and we were looking in that position, Xhaka was one of the players on my list.

“That is how much I liked him. I was happy when Arsenal signed him because I thought he was going to be a terrific player.

Arteta confirmed he had held talks with Xhaka and added: “I spoke to him and told him how much I like him and what I expect from him. How important he is for the team.

Wenger, Emery, and now Arteta all rate Xhaka highly. At some point we have to think there must be more to it than what we see.

Arteta says he "thought he was going to be a terrific player..." but doesn't say he is now. He has to make do atm and I've no idea how he'll coach intelligence.

 

[celestis]

Wenger still maintains Xhaka is intelligent, which he is . Being hotheaded is different to intelligence . So the City rumours were true then ,

Ít could be that Arteta realises that any midfield combination without Xhaka just doesn't work .

 

[TheEconomist]

I don't think Xhaka is a bad player. He's decent enough. The problem is the rest of our midfielders are just decent too. We need a good/exceptional player in the mix to compete with the strong teams .

I wasnt too offended by Xhakas tantrum, so I dont mind him staying. We just need to get a real player in too

 

[Penn_]

At least Arteta recognises this, should’ve been taken out the team beforehand to prevent it.

But until we can sign new players he remains our best midfielder, can’t blame Arteta if he goes for him.

 

[albakos]

The fact that Arteta admits that Xhaka was considered from City and then there was also genuine interest from Klopp at Liverpool, tells you that he is a player which has qualities that are well regarded by top coaches.

Let's hope that Arteta's comments mean that he will try to find our best setup in order to make our midfield better around Xhaka.
Let's be honest, despite his flaws on speed/agility, hot-headed antics etc.. Xhaka is still the best central midfielder we have, better than Torreira, Guendouzi, Willock.

Xhaka/Torreira used to work very well at beginning, until Emery broke it apart.

 

[tap-in]

I think Arteta has a 2 point plan.

• Praise Xhaka in the hope that it lifts him from poor to acceptable
• Praise Xhaka to push his value as high as possible for Jan sale

For me its all those give away passes he has made over the years, you cant iron out a fault like that without a brain transplant.

 

[Maybe]

Right, here we go again! I've already seen that in Özil case and it's being repeated now with Xhaka. Everybody likes them and they speak highly of them, but the funny thing is, there was zero interest for either player on the market.
Why did they buy Rodri for 60 while we would be more than happy to sell Xhaka for 30? Do they like the player and when they properly scout him they decide to pay double for another option? That would explain a lot because Xhaka, on the surface, does look like a complete player but when they closely monitor what he is doing, they all decide to look for more expensive options.

A lot of big clubs invested heavily in AMC and CM positions and we've received zero offers for both Xhaka and Özil, only some nice words from other managers.

 

[North5]

To be fair he has to say positive things to keep the changing room harmony.

I doubt it will take more than a few of xhakas complete shockers before the fans remember again and Mikel sees for himself the **** that is Granit Xhaka.

 

[Jae]

Think people should probably take those comments with an enormous pinch of salt.

As Arteta said, everyone starts with a clean slate. It's up to Arteta to turn him into the player we all thought he'd be when we signed him and it's up to Xhaka to prove all is us doubters wrong. No excuses for him anymore.

 

[Ash10]

To be fair he has to say positive things to keep the changing room harmony.

I doubt it will take more than a few of xhakas complete shockers before the fans remember again and Mikel sees for himself the **** that is Granit Xhaka.

Three years of being utter crap didn’t change the tone of his fanatics even the slightest, few more shockers won't do anything to them. As long as people keep bringing stuff like nationality & religion in club football, people like Xhaka & Özil will keep on having fanatics no matter what they do on the field

 

[Maybe]

The fact that Arteta admits that Xhaka was considered from City and then there was also genuine interest from Klopp at Liverpool, tells you that he is a player which has qualities that are well regarded by top coaches.

Let's hope that Arteta's comments mean that he will try to find our best setup in order to make our midfield better around Xhaka.
Let's be honest, despite his flaws on speed/agility, hot-headed antics etc.. Xhaka is still the best central midfielder we have, better than Torreira, Guendouzi, Willock.

Xhaka/Torreira used to work very well at beginning, until Emery broke it apart.

Yeah that's fine, but why do always need to point out that he is our best midfielder when his competition is 2 teenagers and a loanee from RM? The guy is bang average when he's doing well and these comments from Arteta are not helping at all, in fact, he is just pissing fans off when most of us had enough of him and Özil.
We've had some brilliant midfielders over the years and I can't remember anyone getting so much support like princess Özil and Xhaka for doing f**k all.

 

[albakos]

Yeah that's fine, but why do always need to point out that he is our best midfielder when his competition is 2 teenagers and a loanee from RM?

And how is that Xhaka's fault ?

 

[irishgunnerz]

Three years of being utter crap didn’t change the tone of his fanatics even the slightest, few more shockers won't do anything to them. As long as people keep bringing stuff like nationality & religion in club football, people like Xhaka & Özil will keep on having fanatics no matter what they do on the field

Two different scenarios though. Am not Turkish or Muslim but some of the stuff written about Özil is just ridiculous. He was sublime for us for several years and to think he suddenly, unilaterally and with no additional context whatsoever fell off a cliff performance wise is an oversimplification even Trump would be proud of.

As for Xhaka, irrespective of how positive dressing room is, he's never really fitted in here. No idea why as when playing for the Swiss he looks a far better, far more involved and confident player (similar to how he played in Germany) but has never hit that level for us.

If anyone can help him though it's probably Arteta who worked hard on his own game to rein in his instincts and transition to a deeper midfield role. Not hugely optimistic but could happen

 

[shootxhakashoot]

Wenger still maintains Xhaka is intelligent, which he is . Being hotheaded is different to intelligence . So the City rumours were true then ,

Ít could be that Arteta realises that any midfield combination without Xhaka just doesn't work .

Saying the right things regarding football isn't the same as football intelligence. Xhaka has proven time and time again he lacks football intelligence and with his recent tantrum, intelligence in general. Would be truly gobsmacked if Arteta decided to build his team around this guy. It won't work.

 

[shootxhakashoot]

Two different scenarios though. Am not Turkish or Muslim but some of the stuff written about Özil is just ridiculous. He was sublime for us for several years and to think he suddenly, unilaterally and with no additional context whatsoever fell off a cliff performance wise is an oversimplification even Trump would be proud of.

As for Xhaka, irrespective of how positive dressing room is, he's never really fitted in here. No idea why as when playing for the Swiss he looks a far better, far more involved and confident player (similar to how he played in Germany) but has never hit that level for us.

If anyone can help him though it's probably Arteta who worked hard on his own game to rein in his instincts and transition to a deeper midfield role. Not hugely optimistic but could happen

Arteta was average for us. Not good enough to be our playmaker so he adapted to play deeper. I remember him playing for us and he was just patching up Wengers inability to put in a proper ball winning dm. He did an OK job at it but he wasn't what we needed. It's not OK to make the same mistakes with Xhaka as far as I'm concerned.

 

[albakos]

you cant iron out a fault like that without a brain transplant.

Will you share your theory supporting that ?
I am not aware if there's ever been a successful brain transplant