It would be fair to say that this season has not entirely gone according to plan for Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta’s side have endured suspensions, poor form and a mountain of injuries that have seen them fall six points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool.
However, while the Spaniard has had to deal with a multitude of problems, there have been some positives, such as Bukayo Saka taking another step forward and the emergence of squad players like Ethan Nwaneri.
In fact, there is another player who’s caught people’s attention this year, a player who could one day be the club’s new Granit Xhaka.
Granit Xhaka's Arsenal career
Xhaka joined Arsenal from Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach in the summer of 2016 for around £30m, and it would probably be accurate to say that for his first three or four years, he wasn’t a particularly beloved player, in part for his tendency to make mistakes and the lack of impact he’d have on games.
This came to a head in October 2019 when he swore at the Emirates crowd and threw the captain’s armband and shirt to the ground after being booed when being substituted.
At that point, it looked like his time in North London was over.
However, Arteta was appointed manager just a couple of months later and convinced the Swiss international to stay and fight, which is what he did.
Over the next few years, the tenacious midfielder became more and more integral to how the team played, providing assists, scoring goals and helping to control games, and it was in the club’s surprise title challenge in 22/23 that he reached the zenith of his powers.
However, more surprising than his incredible uptick in form was the fans’ response, as by the end of that campaign, he had his own song, which was regularly sung by fans home and away.
After this fairytale redemption, the new fan favourite decided to call time on his Arsenal career and joined Bayer Leverkusen for around £21m last summer.
Now, it would appear as if Arteta signed Mikel Merino this summer in a bid to replace Xhaka in the left-eight position, and while that may work out for the next few years, there is an incredibly exciting academy graduate who could be his long-term replacement.
Arsenal's next Xhaka
So, the academy graduate we are talking about is none other than Myles Lewis-Skelly.
The 18-year-old prospect has made a few cameo appearances this season and looked brilliant while doing so, but he really stepped up on Wednesday night as he made his first Champions League start for the club against AS Monaco and looked sensational doing so.
In fact, the Islington-born gem was so good that football.london’s chief Arsenal writer, Kaya Kaynak, awarded him an 8/10 match rating at full-time, writing that he looked incredibly ‘accomplished’ on the ball and ‘showed composure beyond his years’ throughout the encounter.
Now, there may be some of you scratching your heads and wondering how a young left-back could be the club’s long-term heir to Xhaka, but hear us out.
The first thing to consider is that, like the Swiss international, the youngster, whom podcaster Will Balsam dubbed a “different beast”, seems to have an absolute wand of a left foot, which we saw on full display when he played a defence-splitting pass into Gabriel Jesus to set up the team’s first goal on Wednesday.
The second thing to remember is that, like the Leverkusen star, the Hale Ender’s primary position is actually in central midfield, and the fact he can play on the left of a back four – like Xhaka could – is just a bonus.
For example, across his appearances at the junior levels and in the first team, 26 have come in defensive midfield, and ten have come in central midfield, making it clear where his primary positions are.
Appearances
26
10
9
Goals
2
1
0
Assists
3
6
1
Goal Involvements per Match
0.19
0.70
0.11
Ultimately, while it could be a few years down the line, should Arteta move Lewis-Skelly into the left eight, then there is every chance he could be the Gunner’s new Xhaka.
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