Arsenal have more or less completed the signing of Granit Xhaka and this could be a game changer for the club from London. Xhaka is known for his incredible tenacity in midfield and his range of passing could be the key in their attacks next season.
The surprising factor in all this is that the deal was completed rather quickly or will be completed quickly and that does cast a shadow on the future of many of the midfielders in the Arsenal side. Two such stars are Francis Coquelin and Mohamed Elneny.
Coquelin though has been one of the better midfielders in the side since his move from the youth team to the senior squad but injuries have played a huge role when it comes to him missing out major games for the Gunners.
Elneny though is the tougher case to crack as he was signed in the winter transfer window last season and even put up a couple of great performances for Arsenal, most notably against Barcelona in the Nou Camp in the Champions League.
One thing seems to be a surety is that Xhaka will be or should be a starter for the side and that takes away one slot in midfield. With the Swiss international set for a bright future at the club, just what happens to the other midfielders at the club?
Xhaka to star but who else to play with him?
The number of stars that Arsenal have in midfield would always have been a problem in the long run. Most of them are not world class and that would mean a few sacrifices would have to be made to accommodate Xhaka regularly.
Mohamed Elneny and Francis Coquelin might end up rotating their playing time at the club. The Egyptian only signed in the winter window but he would obviously want to play out more than the odd game for the Gunners.
Francis Coquelin for his part would also want to play the majority of games for Arsenal, especially for the great season he had with Arsenal. The youngster was the best defensive midfielder Arsenal had all season and dropping him might not be the best thing to do either.
Xhaka though could work brilliantly with Santi Cazorla as he would provide a lot of cover to the defence and also help out in attack with his range of passing. He isn’t someone who is the best when it comes to being disciplined and this is where the likes of Coquelin and Elneny could help out the Swiss star.
Expecting Xhaka to do a lot of the defensive work would be suicidal for the team and the option to keep him in check would be to play him alongside Coquelin or Elneny but as Arsenal would prefer to go for the jugular in most games, the duo would probably be sitting on the bench as the Swiss man plays and stars for the side in midfield.
Comments are closed.