Arsenal’s Granit Xhaka has been stripped of the Arsenal Captaincy following his angry confrontation with home fans during the 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace.
The swiss midfielder reacted to ironic cheers and then the jeers when he was substituted, appearing to shout expletives in the direction of the fans before sarcastically applauding. He then removed his shirt before leaving the field heading straight down the tunnel.
The 27 year old was named the club’s captain in September. He has not played for Arsenal since his confrontation with the fans and he is not included in the Arsenal squad to face Vitoria SC in the Europa League this week.
Arsenal manager Unai Emery has confirmed that Gabonese striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will be the club’s new captain.
‘’I have spoken to Granit and he is no longer one of the captains in the group.’’ Emery said in a press conference to preview Arsenal’s clash with Vitoria SC.
Unai Emery said that the club needs to be calm when considering Xhaka’s future at the club. Emery had previously been critical of Xhaka insisting the player was wrong and the club’s fans needed to be treated with respect.
‘’We play for the supporters. We need to have a lot of respect for them when they are applauding us and when they are criticizing us. ‘’ Said Emery after the Crystal Palace match.
Granit Xhaka joined Arsenal from German Club Borussia Monchengladbach in 2016 and has already made over 100 appearances for Arsenal. He has scored 7 goals for Arsenal since joining.
Arsenal’s performances haven’t been good recently. They have won just one of their past five matches in all competitions and are at 5th position in the Premier League table. They are however on top of Group F in the UEFA Europa league after 3 wins in 3 matches.
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