Granit Xhaka: Next Captain?

[Big Poppa]

Agree with you guys.

Interesting that he made a few runs into the box. A completely new dimension to our attack if he can do it consistently.

I’d prefer him to shoot more often tbh

 

[Big Poppa]

Ramsey is gone. we need someone else to fill that gap.

Promise I’m not picking on you.

The Ramsey model is defunct and a big reason why teams have been able to drive a truck through our midfield over the last few years. With some productive wide forwards staying wide, midfield runs at the expense of defensive stability will be less required.

 

[krackpot]

Promise I’m not picking on you.

The Ramsey model is defunct and a big reason why teams have been able to drive a truck through our midfield over the last few years. With some productive wide forwards staying wide, midfield runs at the expense of defensive stability will be less required.

no offense taken. Yeah, we do get caught high up the pitch.

But we need a plan B sometime, to just confuse the defenders. Wenger used to get stuck with everyone passing around the box, the strikers marked and no opening in sight.

Laca does draw the defense away from the center, which is how most of the chances fell to Auba the other day.

 

[TheBoyBeatty]

Xhaka is the definition of bittersweet to this team. Got a lot more weapons in his Arsenal (no pun intended) as a midfielder, there seems to be such a clumsiness to his game where although he can do something great one minute you're sitting there waiting for him to pick up a booking or lose possession or take a wild shot, however that has faded slightly more this season, it's still a shadow over his overall game.

I'm not convinced he can be as aggressive as Ramsey was in attack in terms of replacing his role but I do believe he has the potential to, it will not be a quick transition and with us, I'd want us to scan the market for a long term replacement for Ramsey straight away.

 

[Mark Tobias]

(no pun intended)

Blatant lies, the pun is always intended

 

[Coolin]

Too many lapses in concentration to be considered a top midfielder. He puts the opposition in twice a game with his botched square passes from inside our half. Should be a squad player. We need better.

 

[marting]

His improved this year, i think you can tell when his not in the heart of the midfield, his passing range is pretty vital to our overall play. He still has a brain fart every game, His next level is to become more consistant.

 

[squallman]

Too many lapses in concentration to be considered a top midfielder. He puts the opposition in twice a game with his botched square passes from inside our half. Should be a squad player. We need better.

If we can find a better player I want Xhaka sold to be honest. Partly because I don't think he's top class and partly to raise funds.

If Kroenke isn't going to dip his hands in his pockets and we don't get CL football then I think we should sell some of our "good but flawed" players to get money to reinvest in the squad.

His reputation outstrips his performances so he should be able to fetch a good price.

 

[Maybe]

If we can find a better player I want Xhaka sold to be honest. Partly because I don't think he's top class and partly to raise funds.

If Kroenke isn't going to dip his hands in his pockets and we don't get CL football then I think we should sell some of our "good but flawed" players to get money to reinvest in the squad.

His reputation outstrips his performances so he should be able to fetch a good price.

While I don't think he's a great player, he definitely falls into the category of good enough players. Selling him won't make a difference to our budget.

 

[Erlis]

Sell him to Liverpool, he can play there with Shaqiri.

His market value is around 45 million pounds I read so I think there is enough money to buy a decent replacement, maybe a Fabinho

P.S. Now seriously, still can't believe that Arsenal didn't go for Shaqiri with such a low fee.

 

[YeahBee]

Everybody seems to agree that he is better and makes less mistakes this season

IMO because we are more properly organized now

But we are still not fully organized

When we are he will shine even more

 

[Erlis]

Everybody makes mistakes but Xhaka's get counted by some people (one, ok one..two .. two bad passes), even exaggerated. The main reason being because he is the maestro of passing.

 

[squallman]

While I don't think he's a great player, he definitely falls into the category of good enough players. Selling him won't make a difference to our budget.

Define good enough? To me, he's in the same group as Walcott, Song, Coquelin, Clichy, Vermaelen and Gibbs. A bunch of flawed players who we didn't miss one iota when they left.

Be honest, how damaging do you think it would be to the side if Granit Xhaka left and we replaced him?

EDIT:
I'm not saying that they were bad players for us or that Xhaka is bad. Clichy went on to win the league after all, although Man City could have played one of us at LB and still won the league. They just weren't as good as Wenger thought they were or wanted them to become.

 

[Dutch D]

I'm happy he is improving steadily this season, but I still feel somewhat traumatized. If we could replace him with Ndombele (I think both would demand a similar fee) or Aouar I'd take it.

 

[Maybe]

Be honest, how damaging do you think it would be to the side if Granit Xhaka left and we replaced him?

Vermaelen before his injuries would be the closest thing to what Xhaka is today, good player on his day with some flaws when it's not his day.
It would be something about 30-40 mil damage if you sell him and buy a better player. At this time, I would rather keep Xhaka and focus on defence.
Selling Mustafi and investing additional 30-40 mil would be something more interesting.

 

[progman07]

Define good enough? To me, he's in the same group as Walcott, Song, Coquelin, Clichy, Vermaelen and Gibbs. A bunch of flawed players who we didn't miss one iota when they left.

Be honest, how damaging do you think it would be to the side if Granit Xhaka left and we replaced him?

EDIT:
I'm not saying that they were bad players for us or that Xhaka is bad. Clichy went on to win the league after all, although Man City could have played one of us at LB and still won the league. They just weren't as good as Wenger thought they were or wanted them to become.

Off-topic: It's an inconsistent list, that's unfair on especially Clichy*, but also Walcott and Song (we were very close to knocking out the best Barcelona side ever with all 3 of them in the first 11). I'd give my arm to have Clichy, Song and a young Walcott (yes, before the injuries he was very dangerous, and made his mark in several big games) back in our squad.

On-topic: I get the point, Xhaka can be replaced without people noticing. I agree that Xhaka has 1-2 big flaws (very slow, and often commits serious mistakes in key positions), and in the mid-term future he is a player we should improve on, but unless we can pull out another Torreira from somewhere, I'm doubful we could replace him properly right now without having to over-spend on what we receive for him. I also love his mentality, he looks like a natural leader and that's something we need.


*Fun fact: We conceded only 31 goals in 2007/08 with Clichy playing 38 games in the defense. That is how many goals we have already conceded so far this season.

 

[Fallout]

emery has done a wonderful job with him so far. i didn't rate him at all under wenger -- in particular, how one-dimensional and error-prone he was.

he still has those flaws to a certain extent, but he's progressing. i love how he's not afraid anymore to dribble and use his body to shield the ball under pressure. defensively he is also really solid. i may be in the minority, but i liked his cameos at CB. and i'm very happy he has rediscovered his passing range after he had seemingly lost that element last season.

our squad is certainly flawed, but xhaka isn't contributing to that imo. i can actually envision him as a starter in a 3rd/4th place team. still not good enough to be a starter for a title winner imo (i.e. man city or liverpool), but we are not close to that level anyway.

 

[truth_hurts]

If we want to be challenging for major honours, can Xhaka be a starting player in our spine? I used to think yes. I now categorically think no.

The world class features to his game were his long range passing and shot taking ability. He barely uses either these days. In a quest for top 4, he's good enough, but I feel we need to upgrade in the summer. Worth keeping in the squad though. I wonder if Javi Martinez is available in the summer?

 

[squallman]

Off-topic: It's an inconsistent list, that's unfair on especially Clichy*, but also Walcott and Song (we were very close to knocking out the best Barcelona side ever with all 3 of them in the first 11). I'd give my arm to have Clichy, Song and a young Walcott (yes, before the injuries he was very dangerous, and made his mark in several big games) back in our squad.

On-topic: I get the point, Xhaka can be replaced without people noticing. I agree that Xhaka has 1-2 big flaws (very slow, and often commits serious mistakes in key positions), and in the mid-term future he is a player we should improve on, but unless we can pull out another Torreira from somewhere, I'm doubful we could replace him properly right now without having to over-spend on what we receive for him. I also love his mentality, he looks like a natural leader and that's something we need.

*Fun fact: We conceded only 31 goals in 2007/08 with Clichy playing 38 games in the defense. That is how many goals we have already conceded so far this season.

Am I being unfair? Your first paragraph, IMO, epitomizes why the club went 9 years without a trophy. Our team back then was dross (Silvestre, Denilson, Almunia), one or two world class players (Fabregas, Van Persie) and too many guys who were good but not good enough (Walcot, Song, Fabianski). Sure Walcott had his uses and Song wasn't a bad DM but clinging on to those two stopped us from signing better players. I'm not knocking them, they just weren't good enough to be starters for a title winning team.

The club gets way too attached to these type of players instead of being ruthless and improving on them when the opportunity arises. You also know that when the shoe is on the other foot, these same players have no qualms about leaving us high and dry. We're being loyal to the guys we have now but how long do you think it would take Mustafi to get to the airport if his agent told him Real Madrid or Barcelona wanted him?

Walcott did have a knack for scoring in big games and was our top scorer for a season. All that means to me is that we should have sold him for a big fee and got in someone else. The only thing Theo was really good at was finishing and using his pace. Average in every other department. He could have used his skills to become a dangerous Wideman but was too fixated on becoming the next Michael Owen

I don't think Xhaka is a leader. He has way too many lapses in concentration. Was it against Watford last season where he was standing around picking his nose while they scored? He just isn't switched on enough.

Your last paragraph is more of an indictment on our current defence than it is praise for Clichy. There is also a difference between better than what we have and good enough to be where we want to be. Example, Giroud was a far better striker for us than Chamakh. The former still wasn't good enough to be our first choice.

EDIT:
Speaking of players who left us first chance they got. Remember City's tunnel cam? Players are standing in the tunnel. Wenger walks past Clichy and totally ignores him. leading Clichy turns to another City player and tells him, "its only been 9 years" referring to the time him and Arsène have known each other. Clichy's departure was kind of sudden IIRC, something must have happened there for him to leave just like that and Wenger to blank him because Wenger is usually ambicable with ex players.

 

[truth_hurts]

Am I being unfair? Your first paragraph, IMO, epitomizes why the club went 9 years without a trophy. Our team back then was dross (Silvestre, Denilson, Almunia), one or two world class players (Fabregas, Van Persie) and too many guys who were good but not good enough (Walcot, Song, Fabianski). Sure Walcott had his uses and Song wasn't a bad DM but clinging on to those two stopped us from signing better players. I'm not knocking them, they just weren't good enough to be starters for a title winning team.

The club gets way too attached to these type of players instead of being ruthless and improving on them when the opportunity arises. You also know that when the shoe is on the other foot, these same players have no qualms about leaving us high and dry. We're being loyal to the guys we have now but how long do you think it would take Mustafi to get to the airport if his agent told him Real Madrid or Barcelona wanted him?

Walcott did have a knack for scoring in big games and was our top scorer for a season. All that means to me is that we should have sold him for a big fee and got in someone else. The only thing Theo was really good at was finishing and using his pace. Average in every other department. He could have used his skills to become a dangerous Wideman but was too fixated on becoming the next Michael Owen

I don't think Xhaka is a leader. He has way too many lapses in concentration. Was it against Watford last season where he was standing around picking his nose while they scored? He just isn't switched on enough.

Your last paragraph is more of an indictment on our current defence than it is praise for Clichy. There is also a difference between better than what we have and good enough to be where we want to be. Example, Giroud was a far better striker for us than Chamakh. The former still wasn't good enough to be our first choice.

EDIT:
Speaking of players who left us first chance they got. Remember City's tunnel cam? Players are standing in the tunnel. Wenger walks past Clichy and totally ignores him. leading Clichy turns to another City player and tells him, "its only been 9 years" referring to the time him and Arséne have known each other. Clichy's departure was kind of sudden IIRC, something must have happened there for him to leave just like that and Wenger to blank him because Wenger is usually ambicable with ex players.

Massively agree. It isn't just Xhaka to be fair, there are a few with this billing. Namely Mustafi, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Leno and Iwobi. The latter two have time on their side and are worthy of a squad role. The three former players regularly start and are squad level. Mustafi would be back up cb/rb at a top, top club and Xhaka and Kolasinac would be on the bench.

Even worse none of their places are under serious threat, bar Iwobi, who probably doesn't start in our strongest team. The likes of Leno, Holding, Maitland-Niles, Ghendouzi, Iwobi, Nketiah, Smith-Rowe and Nelson need to be playing under consistent op-level performers, so they can fit in.

How many starting players for city, pool, Chelsea or even (sick) Sp**s are squad filler level?

None at city, Henderson at pool (who barely starts) and arguably TAA, nobody at Chelsea depending on how you rate Morata and only Dier at Sp**s, who again rarely starts these days.

We need to level up.