Granit Xhaka’s departure is a hard one to swallow. I had hopes till the end that Arteta could convince him to stay another season, but it was not to be. 296 games for Arsenal in seven seasons; that’s 42 games per season. He missed only a few games during his Arsenal career and played in 37 of our PL games last season.
We could count on Granit. He always wore the shirt with pride, and under Arteta he learned to manage his temper and became his talisman on the pitch. All managers loved Granit but many fans could not see what the Swiss master brought to our game. It all came sort of good at the end and I am glad this was the case, but we really needed him to stay put for at least another season.
The left flank was Xhaka’s. Yes he was pushed higher up during last season’s campaign and did very well with goals and assists (14 in total in the PL), but he did so much more for the team. In this attacking position he managed an incredible pass accuracy of 87% and made other players better. Big Gab knew Granit would cover him and the left flank, so did the Zinch or Tierney. Saka could count on him with his raking diagonal passes finding him in space time and again. Martinelli became a much more composed player too.
Granit offered a left foot with passing precision and all benefited from this. Most importantly, Xhaka played with his head up and anticipated passes and follow up passes constantly. He read the game so well and gave structure to our entire left flank. His slight lack of speed was made up for by his intelligence and positioning; he seldom got caught out. He was the most important player for Arteta (‘s tactics) on the pitch, and only a giant like Declan Rice can (eventually) replace him.
I don’t know why Granit left. We can only speculate. Having had a week’s holiday in Switzerland, I can understand why he is gradually moving back to his home. Leverkusen, a Rhine city, is a stepping stone on his way back. The values there are similar to the Swiss values: there is respect for people and privacy is respected. Granit is a family man and as a family they will feel much more at home in Germany.
I wish him well and will make sure to watch him play in the Bundesliga next season.
With Rice we have an excellent replacement albeit a slightly different player. I think Declan is an improvement long-term but he will miss Granit’s gentle leadership and guidance in the team. Luckily, Arteta has come out saying Partey is going to stay as this is vital for the continuity of our progress in the team. Rice needs settling in.
I would imagine that Declan will sit deepish behind two attacking midfielders – the most exciting variant of total football. That systems does suit Granit less, even though he made a success of his more advanced position last season. I think the likes of ESR, Havertz and Trossard will thrive playing next to the Ode and do even better than Granit’s 14 goals/assists. But they are all not good at defending and lack Granit’s overall mastery of the game. This worries me.
No doubt Declan and Partey will often play together, especially in the harder games. Together they will make us forget Xhaka gradually, but it’s in those games where we just play one of them that we will look more vulnerable of the counter or after losing possession in midfield. Big Gab will be more exposed. The Zinch defensive qualities will be exposed more too. Declan (or Thomas) will simply have too much space to cover during those moments).
I’d imagine that Arteta’s answer will be to push the full backs up to support Declan or Partey in those sort of games…. and play even more attacking football. Timber’s signing is therefore a very exciting one. Push up and up and suffocate the opponent, giving them no time and space to pass the ball around. Total Football ala Guardiola. Cruijff at the home of football. Ashburton Grove the New Amsterdam. Wenger will purr and his bullishness that we will win the title may become true. I am hopeful, and excited, this will be the case.
Every great team is build on solid, gradually developed foundations. I find it a shame that Granit will not be able to pick the juicy fruits of his great toil – physically and mentally – over the last seven years. But I for one will not forget what he did for us and what he stood for. A Footballer in Full.
Farewell, Granit, and thank you for all you did for us.
By TotalArsenal.
Bergkampesque 
Totally agree. I think in the long run we`ll be fine and the players we`ve brought in will potentially step us up a level but I worry about the balance of the side in the early part of the season. Luckily for us, we have quite a favourable fixture list during this period and should be able to pick up plenty of points whilst we try to find the right balance. Whenever Xhaka was missing last season, we looked all over the place. We badly missed his presence and the team lost all it`s shape. He was brilliant at providing that extra bit of defensive cover when we lost possession and his experience really showed in those tight moments when we looked to close out a game. He always gave 100% when he played and I wish the Geezer nothing but the best at his new club. Unless it`s against The Arse, of course.
Perfect farewell to the cement of our midfield in the last 7 years.
I agree with you, TA, that albeit Rice is an improvement defensively and Havertz is a step ahead offensively, Declan doesn’t have his attacking and Kai doesn’t have Granit’s defensive contributions. I hope the rest of the team will supply them when needed.
I can only imagine, that there is no need for a B2B midfielder in Arteta’s repertoire; in the 4-1-4-1 Xhaka would have less chances to shine, and from the good old 4-2-3-1 a Partey-Rice partnership is indeed more airtight. Or maybe he didn’t like newcomers making twice as much money as him; I am only convinced in the “wife’s self-actualization” explanation being bull$hit.
I think Havertz and maybe even Trossard will be able to replicate or improve on Xhaka’s goal contribution in every 231 minutes (even though the CL will be a lot harder competition than the EL was last season), but Xhaka was much more than his goals and assists. He had the intelligence to transit from defense to counterattack in a matter of seconds, and his passes were fast yet precise.
Anyway, good luck to him. I believe he picked an similarly exciting and challenging project. The Bundesliga used to be a race with only 2 probable winners, now it is expected to change. It seems a 4-way competition to me now, with Bayern Munich most likely to keep hoarding the domestic trophies, but the second spot is open to Dortmund, Leipzig and Leverkusen. They have a young and success-hungry coach with a vast experience as a player, they managed to keep the RB in Germany while signing the best LB in the world (based on last season’s performance only). They have huge CBs (although I’m not sure how good they are technically), and their midfield trio of Xhaka, WC winner Palacios, and Florian Wirtz, a world-class AM on his own right they look very promising. Up front they don’t look too sharp to be honest, but if they manage to keep hold of Diaby and the latest signings prove to be effective, they can easily retain their top4 spot next year.
Hear! Hear! Granit will be missed. Good to hear that Thomas is staying though. As PB has pointed out our squad is too large. It’s going to be interesting to see who goes. There may be a couple of surprises.
Thank you Total – a fine farewell to an Arsenal stalwart.
I wish Granite the best of luck for his future. I have an awful feeling that we won’t know how much he will be missed until we play without him. He was not only our mid field general but he was our number one enforcer.
Thanks Total. He deserves the honour you bestow upon him.
Always been interested in names and Xhaka’s is Albanian but of African origins (I wonder if it derived from the Turkish slave trade). It seems to carry the meaning, “passionate” which befits our former general. Granite in Albanian means the rocky substance, but is derived from the Latin for “grain” or “grainy”. All in all, a tough fella who supplies bread (the staff of life) to his employer, team mates and fans; wears his heart on his sleeve, and goes both with and against the grain…
God bless him.
Johnno, good points, especially re a decent start to the season fixture-wise. The last five games of the season are once again tough, so we will need to have the balance right then.
PB, all agreed and I like the word ‘cement’. Also good background info re Leverkusen. Sounds like an exciting team and Granit may well win something with them.
OX10, we are in a great position with the three key arrivals already sorted. There are a lot of clubs with buying needs and we have some good players to sell for a more than a decent price. There will also be a few loan deals, no doubt.
Hey G5, always good to read your comments. Yes he was the enforcer too.
Super names analysis, Stuart. To me he always sounded like a warrior,but more a Frank than an Anglo-Saxon if you know what I mean.
Are you watching the game guys?
Strong line up.
Ramsdale
Timber, Tequila, Big Gab, Tomi
Rice, Havertz, Ode, Martinelli, Eddie, Saks
Good start on a difficult pitch. Both teams want to win this.
Horrible mistake from Ramsdale to give United the lead.
But there is plenty of time to bounce back and turn the game around.
Indeed, TA, it’s a really strong line-up. Apart from left back and striker the best players on each position. Let’s see some response.
We started well but did not take at least one very good chance. Martinelli and Havertz ineffective and the Ode very quiet. Eddie tries but also ineffective. Timber looks very accomplished. Rice is doing okay. Two mistakes cost us, but this sort of sloppiness is to be expected on a terrible pitch.
Gabriel Magalhaes handed over his beer to hold, and committed a mistake that made Aaron’s error pale in comparison. Sancho tamed the ball after Gabriel’s miskick run into the box practically uncontested and doubled United’s lead with a powerful strike into the roof of the net.
While the Reds had slightly more possession (and maybe enthusiasm), the goals were not imprinted in the game, they needed the facilitation from our players. Which is a good thing when you think about it: if we cut that out from our game, we will be favorites to win such high profile encounters.
Martinez and Fernández are such scummy players. They are out to injure our players it seems.
Bring on Jesus and The Tross. 🙂
Let’s give them a game now.
On this evidence, we should not play with a deep pivot against the better teams. Early days of course, but we lacked something in midfield.
Second half was a little better, and all n all it was a game Arteta will have found very useful.
A friendly, this was not. Eric ten hag did say there were no “friendly games” where these two clubs are concerned. United were aggressive, closed down our lads quickly, seemed sharper and ahead of us, fitness-wise, in pre-season; surprising since we have played about the same number of games.
It is still a pre-season game and I want to think the performance of our boys would have taught the coaching team a thing or two. That’s what matters.
TA …
Granit’s gentle leadership? Hehe
Great post though, and fun to imagine the new looks we’ll see.
The United game… they were much more up for it. Lucky on the bounce for the first goal, but they were more intense to every loose ball, fouling like it was a league game too.
We’ll get them when it counts.
Well said, J.
New Post 🙂