Granit Xhaka may not have the touch of teammate Xherdan Shaqiri, but he will be just as vital for Switzerland at the European Championships.
The 23-year-old has made quite impact for his Bundesliga side Borussia Monchengladblach, recording over 100 appearances since signing from FC Basel in 2012. A superb reader of the game and a strong passer, it is no surprise he is heavily rumoured to sign with Arsenal for the next season.
Xhaka will be a key player for Switzerland as they face hosts France, Romania, and Albania in their group. He will be leading the team through to what hopefully their first appearance in the knockout round.
READ MORE: Euro 2016 – Switzerland coach spotlight – Vladimir Petkovic
His distribution to the Swiss attackers will need to be at its best as the forwards have struggled creating and scoring goals recently. If the central-midfielder can put the ball in the right place it will certainly make the strikers’ job a bit easier.
Despite his young age, Xhaka has plenty of experience to his name. He has been in the national team setup for five years and has 40 caps and a World Cup under his belt.
While his talent is obvious, coach Vladimir Petkovic and his team will be hoping his impeding move to Arsenal does not distract him from performing to the best of his ability in France.
Xhaka will line up alongside the likes of Shaqiri, Ricardo Rodriguez, Yann Sommer, and Seria A winner Stephan Lichtsteiner, so there is obviously a lot of potential in this team to go a long way in this tournament. This is their best chance to qualify past the Group Stage so they will need all their stars shining in France.
The only questions that remains are – will Xhaka’s star shine the brightest? Is he the man to lead Switzerland to a successful campaign?
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