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Granit Xhaka: Swiss Army Knife or Blunt Tool?

Will Xhaka be here after the summer window?

  • Yes

    Votes: 38 55.1%
  • No

    Votes: 31 44.9%

  • Total voters
    69
  • Poll closed .
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BobP

Memri Fan
Look, as much as a dislike him as a player I could understand keeping Xhaka around for a season for the purpose of addressing other problem areas. Suppose much of this depends on whether or not the targets the club have in mind are available and or affordable.

What I don't understand is handing Xhaka a new contract, with a pay rise no less. The club is pushing the boat out to protect an asset which already has minimal value (as evidenced by Roma's paltry offer) and which will only depreciate as he ages. Why not let him run out his current contract if you can't shift him FFS?

Baffling decision making.
 
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blrgooner

Established Member
You all hear the ovation he got though? I need to keep in mind that the match going fans and the internet fans are not the same.

I liked how he come on the pitch and did a class outside the boot pass that sliced Chelsea's defence, but then did a bunch of bullshit after. Gargantuan player. All over the place like his Arsenal career.
Well after that pass, he was quite off pace. One would expect that considering that he this is his first game back after vacation and has had hardly 1-2 days of training.
The issue with fans and Xhaka can be summarized by this thread title. Some people think he is a swiss army knife and some(many) people think he is a blunt instrument. I think he is neither. He is a decent player who consistently gives 6.5/10 performances.
This talk of Willock being a better player is amazing though. While we are at it, why don`t we replace Auba with Willock. Makes as much sense as replacing Elneny or Xhaka with Willock.
 

The_Playmaker

Established Member
Trusted ⭐
Look, as much as a dislike him as a player I could understand keeping Xhaka around for a season for the purpose of addressing other problem areas. Suppose much of this depends on whether or not the targets the club ha in mind are available and or affordable.

What I don't understand is handing Xhaka a new contract, with a pay rise no less. The club is pushing the boat out to protect an asset which already has minimal value (as evidenced by Roma's paltry offer) and which will only depreciate as he ages. Why not let him run out his current contract if you can't shift him FFS?

Baffling decision making.
Keeping Xhaka around to address our other problem areas? Our main problem is cm. He is literally part of the problem.

Especially when you can't keep him and put him on the bench. If he stays he starts. It's that simple, and we could walk into the new season with a double pivot of him and Elneny. It literally wont matter if we have Martinez and Maddison. Those two wont get them the ball or protect the back 4.
 

BobP

Memri Fan
Keeping Xhaka around to address our other problem areas? Our main problem is cm. He is literally part of the problem.

Especially when you can't keep him and put him on the bench. If he stays he starts. It's that simple, and we could walk into the new season with a double pivot of him and Elneny. It literally wont matter if we have Martinez and Maddison. Those two wont get them the ball or protect the back 4.
I agree with you but we don't live in a fairy tale world where we have the capacity to overhaul the entire squad in the space of one summer transfer window. As I've said in my initial post, much of this stuff depends on the availability/affordability of targets. It's frustrating but as poor as Xhaka is, the CMs we've been linked with don't particularly stand out. It'd be misguided, not to say inflexible, to desist from chasing after obtainable targets in Martinez and Maddison/Ødegaard just so we can go after what is, in this window at least, a chimera.

It's not ideal but it's the world we live in.
 

The_Playmaker

Established Member
Trusted ⭐
I agree with you but we don't live in a fairy tale world where we have the capacity to overhaul the entire squad in the space of one summer transfer window. As I've said in my initial post, much of this stuff depends on the availability/affordability of targets. It's frustrating but as poor as Xhaka is, the CMs we've been linked with don't particularly stand out. It'd be misguided, not to say inflexible, to desist from chasing after obtainable targets in Martinez and Maddison/Ødegaard just so we can go after what is, in this window at least, a chimera.

It's not ideal but it's the world we live in.
Precisely. It is the main reason I don't think AM is a necessity. For me the bare minimum this window was a partner for Partey. That came first before anything else for me. Irrespective of whether Xhaka was here or not.

Say at the start of the window, we went and spent 50 million on a central midfielder, gave him the 4 shirt and said you are the guy who plays next to Partey. Someone clearly better than Xhaka. It would then be on our terms whether he stayed or leaves. Stay and he plays second fiddle. However, we went and spent that money on a cb. That was our statement signing. So Xhaka can come back in, post on Instagram as if he cares about being back. He knows he will get all the game time because we haven't brought someone in who has more stature than him.

We don't help ourselves in moving on our players. We make the wrong players feel important. We have spent time making Laca, Xhaka, Willian, Mari, Nketiah, Holding, Elneny, Chambers all feel important.

Meanwhile Saliba, Martinelli, AMN, Pepe and currently Willock all get the opposite.
 

Taneruit

Established Member

Country: Switzerland

Player:Zinchenko
I think Roma lost this transfer when they began talking about spending 18M+ on random, worse players. We know they had the agreement with Xhaka done for nearly 2 months. The only thing they had to do was pay up. They didn't.

We also know that it was Roma or bust for Xhaka (we know there was at least 1 other italian club rejected and interest from germany)., So, the only thing Arteta had to do with Xhaka then was to be a bit persuasive to keep him. And if he's good at anything, it's that.
 

Plutarch

Well-Known Member
We should all just keep repeating "Granit Xhaka is going to stay with us. He is a key member of our squad," over and over until we hypnotise ourselves into believing it. It will be less painful that way.
 

Macho

In search of Pure Profit 💸
Dusted 🔻

Country: England
lol I'm not mad at Xhaka staying at all, but going from being on the market for 20m and openly flirting with Roma - to extension and supposed key member of the team is genuinely a disasterclass.

I still think he goes personally, but the most entertaining transfer window arc by far.

These amateurs running the show send so many mixed messages to us fans, they had been threatening clear outs all season last season and yet overcharged for players that clearly shouldn't be here for one reason or another.

Clear Out means Clear Out, this isn't what was promised by several mouth pieces who report on behalf of the club.
 

Taneruit

Established Member

Country: Switzerland

Player:Zinchenko
lol I'm not mad at Xhaka staying at all, but going from being on the market for 20m and openly flirting with Roma - to extension and supposed key member of the team is genuinely a disasterclass.

I still think he goes personally, but the most entertaining transfer window arc by far.

These amateurs running the show send so many mixed messages to us fans, they had been threatening clear outs all season last season and yet overcharged for players that clearly shouldn't be here for one reason or another.

Well, yes and no.

Generally this situation is probably much less complicated than it seems and comes down to one reason:

Xhaka was never on the market.

Mourinho has been buttering up Xhaka for a while (going back to 2019). Xhaka was never going to join him at a direct rival, because that's not him. So, when the Tottenham split happened and he went to a totally different league Xhaka thought to himself *Maybe its time for a fresh start*. Requests the transfer to Roma. Roma doesn't pay up and drags it along endlessly. Arteta has another talk with Xhaka when he came back and Xhaka decided to rethink and stay.

So, the only thing that happened is that Roma didn't pay up. Everything else was business as usual.
 

Macho

In search of Pure Profit 💸
Dusted 🔻

Country: England
Well, yes and no.

Generally this situation is probably much less complicated than it seems and comes down to one reason:

Xhaka was never on the market.

Mourinho has been buttering up Xhaka for a while (going back to 2019). Xhaka was never going to join him at a direct rival, because that's not him. So, when the Tottenham split happened and he went to a totally different league Xhaka thought to himself *Maybe its time for a fresh start*. Requests the transfer to Roma. Roma doesn't pay up and drags it along endlessly. Arteta has another talk with Xhaka when he came back and Xhaka decided to rethink and stay.

So, the only thing that happened is that Roma didn't pay up. Everything else was business as usual.
Interesting take, I've been largely going on reports that have been consistent all season.

Your scenario wouldn't surprise me at all though.
 

Taneruit

Established Member

Country: Switzerland

Player:Zinchenko
Interesting take, I've been largely going on reports that have been consistent all season.

Your scenario wouldn't surprise me at all though.

Well, I am too.

From the beginning we heard about Xhaka wanting to leave. (Post-Mourinho announcement at Roma)


Then the player agreement happened fast, before it went to the clubs. Meanwhile we never had any serious reports that Arteta set him up for sale. We did hear that Xhaka immediately rejected at least 1 other club approaching during this time. That's why I have my scenario. Not saying it's 100% correct though.
 

REWB

Well-Known Member
Xhaka will still be here at 40...DEAL WITH IT

He'll probably manage us at some point aswell...He may already be our actual manager...think about it
 

Oxeki

Match Day Thread Merchant
Trusted ⭐

Country: Nigeria

Player:Saliba

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Oxeki

Match Day Thread Merchant
Trusted ⭐

Country: Nigeria

Player:Saliba
lol
Willock is a different sort of player.
Lokonga will get mins but needs time to settle.

Xhaka made a great pass pretty much as soon as he came on & also scored.

What did you expect Arteta to say?😜

Sorry to the internet that Granit & most of the squad cannot be replaced this summer. Unfortunately its not quite that easy in the actual real World.

Now kindly Please get back to your computer games 🤣
Can't wait for you to absolve your master of the blame and heap all the blame on Xhaka when it inevitably goes tits up.
 
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