09 December 2023 , 23:37
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Sky pundit Jamie Redknapp thinks Arsenal will be ruing the sale of Granit Xhaka following their defeat at Aston Villa.
Having been dislodged from the top of the Premier League earlier in the day, Mikel Arteta's side failed to respond as they went down 1-0 at Villa Park. John McGinn's early strike proved match-defining, although there was late VAR controversy as Kai Havertz had an equaliser disallowed for handball.
Despite controlling the contest for large parts, the Gunners appeared out-of-sorts for much of the first half. And Redknapp has cited the summer departure of the Swiss international as harmful to their current form.
"I think if you were to assess Arsenal right now this season the facts are there, they are seven points down on where they were last year and seven goals less," the ex-Liverpool man told Sky Sports. "The performances haven’t been quite as fluid there was so much to enjoy.
"The back four hasn’t changed in midfield with Havertz is he an upgrade on Xhaka? Right now I would say no. I think right now certainly (they miss Xhaka), he had that quality, he gave you that bit of positional sense. He’d get it onto his left foot, he’d create balls into Jesus he just gives you that bit of guile something they’re not possessing."
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Havertz was seemingly s igned to replace Xhaka in a £68million deal from Chelsea. After initially struggling in North London, he scored a vital winner against Brentford last month and was also on target against Luton in midweek - but Redknapp also implied his selection has hampered team structure.
Jamie Redknapp thinks Arsenal miss Granit Xhaka (Sky Sports)HAVE YOUR SAY! Can Aston Villa win the title? Comment below.
"Havertz has had a good little run this last few weeks," he added. "But they've not quite got that balance they had last year where they would dominate teams for 90 minutes."
In the build-up to the game, Arteta himself admitted he missed the presence of the midfielder, who is now flourishing in the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen: "He was a huge player for us,' he told reporters. "We miss Granit, yes. I miss him as well because I love him as a person."
Xhaka joined Arsenal in 2016 and made 297 appearances for the club. Despite being stripped of the captaincy by Arteta in 2019 following an angry reaction towards club fans, he recovered to become a pivotal figure as the Gunners challenged for the title in the 2022/23 season, eventually finishing second.