Arsenal Vs Liverpool: So this is the £35 million Granit Xhaka

Granit Xhaka was phenomenal in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Liverpool on Saturday. This, then, is the player that he was expected to be when he was signed for £35 million three summers ago.

Arsenal do not regularly spend more than £30 million on a player. In fact, when they broke their transfer record in January when acquiring Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for £52 million, it was only the sixth time that they had exceeded the £30 million mark.

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The price that is paid for a player reveals the expectations. A cheap player is not expected to produce as an expensive player. And so, when the Gunners invested £35 million into the services of Granit Xhaka, their joint-second-highest signing in history to match the £35 million paid to obtain Alexis Sanchez two years prior, tells us a lot about what was expected of the midfielder.

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It is fair to say that Xhaka has not lived up to the expectations of a £35 million price tag. Defensive tardiness, a lack of positional sense and poise, a propensity to make mistakes in possession when pressured and an immobility that has hamstrung his effectiveness in the increasingly fast-paced modern game have all undermined his impact and hampered his two seasons at the club, leading many to suggest that he should be sold or replaced, myself chief among them.

But in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Liverpool, a riveting, absorbing affair that was the first real test for the Unai Emery iteration of Arsenal and posed direct opposition to the vulnerabilities of the Swiss international, Xhaka produced like a £35 million player should. He was the orchestrating dictator that he was billed to be. He finally lived up to his expectations.

Playing alongside Lucas Torreira, he and his midfield partner made a staggering 25 ball recoveries. They shielded the Arsenal back four brilliantly, especially in the second half, and contained the blistering Liverpool counter-attack with great awareness, anticipation and purpose. Xhaka himself made more tackles, more recoveries and completed more passes than any other player on the pitch.

His work off the ball was surprisingly pleasant, embodied in a sliding challenge on Mohamed Salah with the Egyptian racing into the penalty area. But it was his play in possession that impressed me the most. And not just the accuracy and progression of his passes. Or the control that he exuded in deep areas. Or his combination play with Torreira and Sead Kolasinac.

It was his play against the high press of Liverpool that was so distinct. For a deep-lying midfielder, this is an element of the game that is becoming increasingly important. With huge numbers of coaches employing a high-pressing defensive scheme, it is critical that teams are now able to evade the press by playing through or around it. Typically, Xhaka has struggled in this area. Not on Saturday. He was excellent, steering Arsenal forward against one of the best pressing teams in the world.

Xhaka controlled the game. And that is precisely what he was signed to do. To dictate. And he did. This is the £35 million Granit Xhaka and it is more than welcome.