Ex-Gunner believes Mikel Arteta is missing his former midfield leader, Granit Xhaka.
Ex-Arsenal man Kieran Gibbs admits the current team under Mikel Arteta is missing Granit Xhaka. The player left them in the summer for Bayer Leverkusen.
The Swiss captain was part of Arsenal’s impressive run in the Premier League last season. He nearly led them to win the Premier League. Bayer Leverkusen star left the club for a new challenge in the summer transfer window.
The North London club signed Kai Havertz to replace him but the German is struggling and Arsenal has failed to fill the void he left behind.
Gibbs talked about Arsenal’s defeat to Newcastle which was their first loss in Premier League. Ex-Gunner believes Mikel Arteta is missing his former midfield leader.
Kieran Gibbs said, as quoted by Talk Sport: “I think the absence of Xhaka actually.
“He probably had his best season last season, let’s be honest, after a long spell at the club.
“I don’t think he was underrated last season. I just think he was appreciated more for what he was doing. He calmed down his antics with his fouls and stuff. He just cleaned up a lot of his game. I felt he was a really good link.
“He gave that balance, especially when [Oleksandr] Zinchenko came in last season and started to play inverted, it gave Xhaka a bit of a different role. I do think it is having a bigger effect on the team than most people think.”
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