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Arsenal: Granit Xhaka still the exact midfielder that’s needed
By Josh Sippie
Arsenal don’t have a defensive midfielder. Or do they? Granit Xhaka suddenly looks to be achieving exactly what everyone is expecting him to be.
Yes, I am often found praising Granit Xhaka after every Arsenal performance. However, slowly but surely, I’m not the only one. In fact, Xhaka has put in five performances in a row now where he hasn’t just been good by my standards, but good by the consensus standards.
And how is he doing it? Quite simply – by being what everyone wanted him to be.
I used to have to urge people to appreciate Xhaka for what he is. He is a distributor, closer to a box-to-box than a defensive midfielder, and he has strength to wield if the situation allows him to.
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But as I alluded to, I don’t even have to try to justify anything by giving my token “focus on his strengths!” spiel. Mainly because his strengths are multiplying and they are starting to include all the things people thought he would never have.
Allow me to gloat for a moment. I have been saying for a while now that his defensive game has improved drastically compared to where it was last season. When coming into the Premier League, improvement is the one thing you want to look for.
Lately, those improvements have been coming on hard and fast and, as mentioned, his last five matches have shown him becoming the defensive midfielder that we have been craving so badly.
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Consider his season average of just two tackles, 1.1 interceptions and 1.5 clearances per match. Hardly an inspiring stat line. But when you average out what he has done these past five matches – five telling matches, mind you – we see a different picture. We see a player assuming a role that everyone ruled out.
In these past five matches, he has averaged 2.8 tackles completed and 2.2 interceptions. Both hefty improvements over his season average. He has also doubled his clearances, averaging 3.0 compared to his 1.5.
In terms of keeping control of the ball, he has been dispossessed, on average, 0.4 times, which is even lower than his stoic 0.6 on the year. And passing? 87%, a small tick over his season average of 86%.
Here’s an in-depth look at what he has been able to do:
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Against Watford: 90%. 4 tackles, 2 interceptions, 3 clearances. Dispossessed – 0
Against AC Milan: 95%. 0 tackles, 2 interceptions, 3 clearances. Dispossessed – 0
Against Brighton: 87%. 3 tackles, 1 interception, 2 clearances. Dispossessed – 0
Against City (Carabao): 78%, 1 tackle, 4 interceptions, 3 clearances. Dispossessed – 2
Against City (EPL): 85%, 6 tackles, 2 interceptions, 1 clearance. Dispossessed – 0
It used to be about finding the right midfielder to accentuate Granit Xhaka’s abilities. Now he has been accentuating his own abilities with every midfield combination Arsene Wenger can throw at him.
The deepest of three between Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey? No problem.
The deeper of two next to Ramsey? Check.
The box-to-box with Aaron Ramsey and Mohamed Elneny playing deeper? Got it.
The defensive pairing with Mohamed Elneny and no Ramsey or Wilshere? Easy.
He’s done it all, and he has done it match after match, changing on the fly. So maybe we shouldn’t be asking ourselves who can bring out the best in Xhaka, but rather who Xhaka can bring the best out of. Which, spoiler alert, looks like just about anyone. Ramsey has been superb playing next to Xhaka and Elneny had a tremendous performance against Watford.
Next: 5 Things Learned Against Watford
The jury is still out on what the best midfield configuration is, but needless to say, no matter the configuration, one name should remain the same – Granit Xhaka.