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Arsenal Cannot Miss Out On Granit Xhaka Transfer
By Josh Sippie
![By Fanny Schertzer (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2F519910be0e2b94ed2c222b79fc57daf8649d8048ecc4f54122ddfda263a3360a.jpg "By Fanny Schertzer (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons")
Arsenal vaulted onto the Granit Xhaka scene not long ago. Scouts had been watching Borussia Monchendladbach play and it was understood that they were there for Granit Xhaka. The 23-year old Swiss midfielder is putting on a clinic for the German side. His defensive prowess and offensive talents have been readily apparent.
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And as the world normally works, that means that more than just one club are interested. Reports indicate that Liverpool are in on Xhaka and Atletico Madrid is as well. Both of those teams are options that can stand toe to toe with Arsenal in the market. Especially given Arsene Wenger’s unwillingness to spend money unless absolutely necessary.
Granit Xhaka is looking at a £20 million bid from Liverpool, according to the report. That price, if that is the asking price, is exceptionally reasonable. With his release clause set to be £21 million in 2017, that means that the time to get the Swiss midfielder is now. We cannot let a situation like Michy Batshuayi come up where we passed on him, then he went to a big club and now he is not even an option.
Granit Xhaka has the skills to improve Arsenal, as I have covered in a recent post. His size and tenacity make him very similar to Francis Coquelin. But his box-to-box mentality make him similar to Aaron Ramsey. He has offensive skills, something Le Coq seems to lack. But he also has disciplinary problems. His yellow and red card accumulation is a bit excessive. That is not a bad thing, though. I would rather have to ween cards out of his system than convince a guy to be more aggressive.
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Monchengladbach is not going to be able to hang onto a star in the making. As strong as they have been this year, it does not seem like a realistic outcome. He is going to seek a bigger stage soon and if Arsenal let him slide through their fingers, they are missing out.
As it stands, Arsenal does have a mass of midfield options, but dig underneath the surface and you will find a barren wasteland. Mikel Arteta, Mathieu Flamini and Tomas Rosicky are all set to move on. Jack Wilshere is an injury machine. Aaron Ramsey’s health is always a question as well. We have some young people as well. That leaves an aging Santi Cazorla, and offense-less Francis Coquelin and a certified genius, Mesut Ozil. Those are our reliable options.
That is unacceptable for a team that hopes to remain relevant in multiple competitions. We are seeing how unacceptable it is with the crashing and burning in the Champions League. Arsenal need help. They are going to need even more help come next summer when their three aging midfielders move one.
Next: Arsene Wenger's Top 10 Signings Ever
Best to get that help now, in January, when we can, rather than wait until the summer when the team will be desperate. We don’t want another Danny Welbeck situation. Wenger waited until the last conceivable minute to land Danny Welbeck when Arsenal were desperate for another striker. It was frustrating and still has not completely paid off.
We also don’t want another Kim Kallstrom.
Granit Xhaka is still reasonably priced, but the longer we wait, the more he will not be. There may be plenty of other midfield options out there but why wait?