Granit Xhaka

He’s playing well and is a far cry from the calamity he’s been for most of the season, which may not say a whole lot as when he’s been bad he’s been utterly terrible.

Will be interesting to see how he develops if at all under the new manager, there’s potentially a good player in there somewhere whether it happens here or elsewhere.

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It definitely doesn’t say a whole lot.

That’s the point really, some are giving him big praise when all he is really doing is not being totally abysmal in matches in which the opposition don’t harass him.

I want him to be legitimately good but I’ve seen nothing to suggest that he’s actually turned a corner.

No shit :sweat_smile:

Of course it does, it’s one of the reasons the deep lying playmaker role is a passers paradise and why someone like Toni Kroos was able to beat 85 players per game (the most in Europe) in the 15/16 season.

However that’s not to say playing in that position is anything but easy, Saul touched on some of the little intricacies & difficulties that come with being the deepest lying midfielder.

https://twitter.com/TiagoEstv/status/977263980279468032

Not sure who’s been saying he isn’t a liability when it comes to being pressed in certain situations because he is there’s no denying that.

He 's not blessed with the technique or ability to by pass the press on his own with a piece of individual brilliance but he’s not alone in that respect, I can think of atleast 8 other Dlp’s who all more often than rely on the ball and the auxiliary options around them to beat their man and Xhaka’s dispossessed stats are pretty much on par with them all too.

Dlp’s Dispossessed P/90’s this season.

Kroos 0.3
Xhaka 0.5
Weigl 0.5
Motta 0.5
Jorginho 0.6
Rodri 0.6
Diawara 0.7
Busquets 0.8
Pjanic 0.8

Not bad for someone who’s a liability on the ball aye lol.

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The thing about those stats is that it doesn’t take into account where a player might have been dispossessed.

Xhaka tends to be dispossessed in dangerous positions that have led to us conceding dangerous chances.

He has improved but I think he needs to work in a system where he will be allowed more time on the ball and our haphazard system hasn’t done a great job of protecting him over the couple years he’s been here.

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Granit has really improved lately. His biggest weakness is still his immobilty and chaos factor when teams press us. A cazorlaesque magician to cover this would of course be ideal to partner a player like Granit.

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Once a shitter always a shitter.

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Yeah but he assaulted Sanchez after 2 minutes.

Swings and roundabouts :sunglasses:

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Couldn’t even care less he’s such trash.

Jamie Redknapp violated him with that analysis. Bad first half.

:joy::joy::joy::joy: Souness absolutely destroying Xhaka at half time

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Comically bad on that first goal. Captain lol

Graeme Souness destroying this guy :smile:

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Souness is a specialist in failure, tbh.

Xhaka has been good lately to be fair. Don’t want to bash him again too much after one bad half.

His interception and ball just lead to our equaliser! Will Souness give him any credit for that? Or just pretend it didn’t happen?

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This is the same Souness that thinks Gerard Pique’s average.

And HATES Paul Pogba with passion :smile:

The man’s a clown.

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Not as midfielder hes not.

What he was saying about Xhaka was spot on.

Only clown today was him

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What he said about the team putting its head down and accepting bad goals was so bang on the money.

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Always liked him as a pundit but jesus, some of them comments are ridiculous :joy: Typical pundit that never watches any league other than the premier league

Souness speaks the truth . His comments on the Arsenal have been bang on none more so than today .
We could do with a few players who had Souness’s power on the pitch .

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