Arsenal star heavily linked with a move to AC Milan following axe from the squad
Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka has been heavily linked with a move to Italian giants AC Milan following his outburst and subsequent loss of captaincy.
The Swiss international was substituted in a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace which the Arsenal fans sarcastically cheered for, thus prompting a reaction from Xhaka.
The midfielder cupped his ears whilst walking off before shouting swear words at the section of fans who were booing and jeering him.
He prompted to throw the captain’s armband off and quickly stormed into the tunnel, which resulted in a huge outrage on social media from the fans of the club.
Arsenal boss Unai Emery was thus forced to relinquish Xhaka’s captaincy duties which were then given to star striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Since the incident at the Emirates, the 27-year-old has yet to feature for the Gunners with even Emery suggesting that he is not sure whether the captain of the Swiss national team will play for the club again.
The bookies have the odds of Xhaka staying at 4/6 till the end of the season whereas he is 11/10 to leave in the January transfer window.
The favourites to sign the enigmatic midfielder are AC Milan, who have Ivan Gazidis as their executive. Gazidis was the chief executive at Arsenal for nearly 10 years and was influential in bringing Xhaka to the Emirates.
Odds for Granit Xhaka’s Next Club
4/1- AC Milan
10/1- Borussia Monchengladbach
11/1- Newcastle
12/1- Atletico Madrid
14/1- Inter Milan
The fallen Italian giants are still in somewhat of a turmoil despite finishing fifth in Serie A last season, their best finish in 6 years.
They failed to qualify for the Champions League and thus the then-manager Gennaro Gattuso resigned from his post.
Gazidis appointed Marco Giampaolo but the Italian coach got sacked in early October having just been in charge for 7 games.
Stefano Pioli was immediately announced as his successor but has only won one out of the five games he has been at the helm for.
Therefore, I Rossoneri currently sit in 14th place after 12 games, 11 points adrift of 4th place Atalanta which is an automatic qualification for the Champions League.
It is reported that Xhaka is already house-hunting in Milan in a bid to put his difficult time at Arsenal behind him.
A move away from Arsenal would mark the end of a tough relationship for both parties, as when Xhaka arrived from Monchengladbach for £35m, he was earmarked as a future great midfielder.
However, he has failed to live up to the potential he showed in the Bundesliga as his performances have often left fans wanting more.
