Arsenal willing to sell Granit Xhaka to fund acquisition of his Swiss teammate
Arsenal are reportedly willing to part ways with their former captain Granit Xhaka in exchange for his Swiss national team counterpart Denis Zakaria.
Xhaka has not featured for the Gunners since his outburst against the club’s fans Arsenal’s home 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace.
Arsenal manager Unai Emery brought the midfielder off after the Eagles came back from a 2-0 deficit to level the score, which prompted the fans to jeer and boo the player as he walked off.
Xhaka reacted furiously, throwing the captain’s armband on the floor and cupping his ears before swearing at the section of fans who had jeered him.
The Swiss captain prompted to quickly take off the Arsenal kit before storming into the dressing room, which prompted a social media outburst from the fans who viewed his actions as extremely disrespectful to the club.
Emery decided to strip the captaincy from Xhaka, which the midfielder was unhappy with, despite him explaining his decision-making in his outburst on social media.
Having not featured for the club since the incident, the 27-year-old has been heavily rumoured to leave the club in the upcoming January transfer window.
It has been reported that Xhaka has been house hunting in Milan in a bid to move to AC Milan, which is 3/1 according to the bookies.
A return to former club Borussia Monchengladbach could also be on the cards, with the odds currently set at 10/1.
A sale to Monchengladbach would make sense as Arsenal’s target Denis Zakaria currently plays for the German outfit, meaning a swap deal could be on the cards.
The current Bundesliga leaders would probably ask for around £30m for the young midfielder, which is slightly less than the price that they let Xhaka go for.
Xhaka joined the Gunners in the summer of 2016 following a great campaign in the European championships for a fee that has risen up to £40m.
His time in North London did not go as hoped since he was earmarked to be the ‘next Xabi Alonso’, such was his potential and playing style.
However, both Arsene Wenger and Unai Emery have failed to build a system to suit the deep-lying playmaker’s ability during his tenure at Arsenal.
Zakaria, who has played alongside Xhaka in the national team, is a slightly different player despite playing the same position.
He is more of a destroyer, which could help Arsenal tremendously as Emery’s men have already conceded 17 goals in just 12 games.
