Arsenal: In defense of Granit Xhaka and the armband he wears

After just advocating for Arsenal to bench Granit Xhaka, it’s time to fly to his defense as a captain and an exemplary member of a sad team.

Yesterday, I did something I never thought I’d do. I said that Arsenal should bench Granit Xhaka. Not because I don’t believe in him (because, spoiler alert, I still do), but because something needs to change, and there’s no hiding that he’s been in poor form. So give him a breather and let him regroup.

Today, though, I have to take a quick turn and defend the hell out of this guy, especially in light of Patrice Evra‘s statements about our woeful, beloved club.

Evra called the Gunners a bunch of babies after the Sheffield United loss. Which sucks. I hate hearing that about my team. Was he completely off base? No. But there are better ways to put it than that. He knew he could hit the headlines with a clAssy sound clip, and he did.

Most people bowed their heads in shame and took the blow from Evra. He wasn’t wrong, even if he was a bit of a… (I’m not allowed to cuss)… about it.

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Granit Xhaka did not take this insult. He did not bow his head in shame and accept what Evra said. He fired back. And sure, a war of words isn’t always that big of a deal. After all, who cares what they say if they can’t stand up for themselves on the pitch.

But in light of being called “babies”, seeing Xhaka stand up for himself and for his teammates made me proud to have him as our captain all over again. Maybe he’s struggling on the pitch, but he has been the first guy to get out there and defend himself and this club after every single let down. And say what you will about this, maybe you think it has no value, but it sure beats hearing a whole lot of nothing.

I’d rather a guy that struggles on the pitch and stares down all the haters than a guy who struggles on the pitch and disappears into the shadows. This is what a captain should be doing. And don’t forget that this is not an easy thing to do when you know you’re not living up to expectations on the pitch at the moment. Which he does know.

So cheers to Granit Xhaka. At least he had the spine to stand up for himself and this club.