Arsenal and Granit Xhaka: Everyody was wrong

The friction between Granit Xhaka and the Arsenal fan base came to a head during Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace. As Xhaka reacted to being booed off the pitch, everybody was wrong.

As soon as the illuminated 34 was thrust into the Emirates sky on the sidelines and an ironic but loud cheer reverberated around the ground, you could tell trouble was on the horizon. And so, over the next trudging few seconds, it transpired.

Find the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal Podcast here — The Granit Xhaka One

Granit Xhaka did not take well to his supporters cheering his departure from the game. He told them ‘f*ck off’ on numerous occasions, though you could only determine that from reading his lips. As he then lumbered his way to the sideline, the fans’ ironic cheers turned to boos. Xhaka then lifted his hand, as if to square up to the vitriol. Then he cupped his ear, asking for more. He stormed down the tunnel, wrestled his shirt off his body and was never to be seen again.

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This is the Arsenal captain in outright and blatant conflict with the fans. It is not exactly the most unified of looks the club has ever enjoyed.

After the match, Unai Emery was inevitably asked about the reaction of his club captain. The Arsenal head coach, to his credit, did not even attempt a defence:

"“He was wrong. He was wrong. Now we need to stay calm and speak with him, to speak inside about that reaction. His reaction was wrong in that moment <…> We are going to speak about that, of course, because the reaction was wrong. We will speak with the players and the club about this reaction <…> We are here because we have supporters. We are the workers inside, but we play for them. We need to have a lot of respect from them, through applause and criticism.”"

But while Xhaka’s response was utterly unacceptable and should lead to major questions regarding both his place in the team and his position as club captain, the fans were not in the right either. In fact, on this sad occasion, everyone was wrong.

Xhaka has had to deal with increasing amounts of abuse in recent months. His pregnant wife was verbally abused on social media. He closed off his Instagram comments section because of the vile responses he was receiving from fans. And now he is dealing with 60,000 fans first cheering the fact that he is not going to be on the pitch and then booing his reaction.

Some may argue that ‘booing’ is a part of sports and that a professional athlete should know how to handle this situation. There is some truth to that line of thinking, which is why Xhaka is far from innocent here. But that does not excuse the immorality of booing your own player, someone you are meant to inherently support, no matter the context. Fans are ‘supporters’, after all.

I have been critical of Xhaka and his performances for some time. I do not believe he should be starting and I do not believe that he should be club captain. But that is not valid enough reason to boo. There is a difference between criticism and abuse, and the Arsenal fans strayed across that line — as they have done on several other occasions with Xhaka, and other players, before.

In the end, then, this is a poignant, sour, disappointing situation, one that leaves a dark, murky stain on a dark and murky season. Everyone is in the wrong. Xhaka. The fans. Even Emery and the club. This was a sad day indeed.