Arsenal: If Granit Xhaka cannot do what he should be able to…

Arsenal’s Granit Xhaka has always been lapse defensively. But now his passing is growing loose as well. If he cannot do what he is apparently good at, what is the point in playing him at all?

For a long time, I have not been the biggest Granit Xhaka fan. While I was ecstatic when he signed, forecasting the sight of a strong, striding midfielder dominate the middle of the park, the rave reviews from the Bundesliga raising expectation, after he failed to take any sort of a step forward during his second season at the club, I very quickly grew suspicious of his actual utility.

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This season, Xhaka has undoubtedly improved. Unai Emery has played him in a role to which he is better suited, while the added legs of Lucas Torreira have helped cover some of his more egregious sins. But if you were to ask what Xhaka’s primary use is, there would be one answer: passing, to dictate the tempo of Arsenal’s play through consistent, accurate, progressive distribution from deep-lying midfield positions.

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And that is a role that is extremely important. Players like Toni Kroos, Xavi and Xabi Alonso have built a career on it. Xhaka certainly has defensive vulnerabilities and his lapse moments are extremely frustrating. But when his passing game is flourishing, it can make up for those deficiencies without the ball. Obviously, you would like a player that can do both, but if they can expertly execute one, it can cover the shortcomings of the other.

For much of this season, Xhaka has been able to do that. His dictating of games has been critical to Arsenal’s set-up, with many of the best collective performances coming in matches that Xhaka is able to control through his excellent passing range. But more recently, not only have his defensive issues come home to roost, but his passing has grown inconsistent and troublingly loose.

In Thursday night’s win over Valencia, Xhaka’s passing went to pot, especially early on, gifting possession to the Spaniard’s on a number of occasions. There was a reason that Arsenal could not gain a foothold in the match before Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubamayeng worked their magic: their passing was terribly loose in the midfield.

And Xhaka was not the only culprit. Lucas Torreira’s distribution was inconsistent, both Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sead Kolasinac failed to shuttle the ball forwards in wide areas, and Valencia pressed Arsenal well, not allowing accurate balls into the two strikers. But if there is a player who is meant to take control of this situation, it is Xhaka. It is what he is in the team for.

This is what he is meant to be able to do. When he makes another defensive error, it is frustrating, but it is understandable. That is just who he is. But when he is not providing the elements that he is supposed to be able to, questions of his value must be asked. What really is the point in playing him?

For now, Emery has no choice. There are no alternative options. But looking longer term, if Xhaka cannot pass well, the question must be posed: What is he in the team for? And I am not sure I can provide a suitable answer.