Granit Xhaka is already establishing himself as ‘a leader’ at Bundesliga pacesetters Bayer Leverkusen after sealing his summer departure from Premier League challengers Arsenal.
The experienced Swiss international might not have enjoyed a moment quite as dramatic and as feverish Declan Rice’s stoppage-time winner against Manchester United in his new Bay Arena home, but it is certainly no accident that Bayer Leverkusen’s place at the top of the embryonic Bundesliga table has coincided with Granit Xhaka’s return to Germany.
One of the most improved midfielders in Europe over the last 18 months or so, Leverkusen’s £21 million summer signing is picking up where he left off at Arsenal; the midfield metronome setting the beat for Xabi Alonso’s symphony and a driving force both on and off the pitch.
“I have the privilege of wearing the captain’s armband,” beams Leverkusen skipper Lukas Hradecky (Kicker). “But with Granit’s, I don’t have to be the only one who talks.
“I have to share this task with him, and that also makes my job easier. He’s just a leader. He takes on a lot of responsibility.
Granit Xhaka shining after Arsenal exit
Xhaka has been on the winning side in all four of his Leverkusen appearances; Alonso’s Bundesliga dark horses taking their tally of goals to a remarkable 19 already during Saturday’s 5-1 shellacking of newly-promoted Darmstadt. A game lit up by the brutal brilliance of centre-forward Victor Boniface and perennially underrated wideman Jonas Hoffman, both players challenging Xhaka for the title of the Bundesliga’s most influential newcomer.
Leverkusen’s top-of-the-table clash with Harry Kane’s Bayern Munich after the international break, however, will pose the biggest test yet of Alonso’s title prospects.
“Bayern Munich is still Bayern Munich. We have to show them respect, but without being afraid,” a bullish Xhaka tells Kicker. “We won’t go to Munich now and defend for 90 minutes. At least, I hope not!
“We don’t need to talk about the fact that Bayern have quality. In Harry Kane, they’ve got a bombastic striker, who can always be dangerous.
“(But) we have taken nine points from the first three games in a really confident manner. Now we go to Munich, and we can play freely. It’s not that we’ve got nothing to lose, but we want to take something away even against such a strong team to see where we really stand.”
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