Xhaka drops strong hint about summer move to Roma
Stefan Bienkowski
- 29 Jun 2021 21:41 BST
- 3 min read
Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka has dropped another hint about his future move to Roma by stating that he is planning on learning Italian.
After five years at the Premier League side, Xhaka is now widely expected to depart Arsenal for a move to the Serie A side.
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For a fee believed to be around €20 million, the Switzerland international would be drawing a line under a run in England that saw him pick up two FA Cups and a Europa League runner-up medal.
However, despite the deal being all but completed, nothing has been confirmed or announced by either club. Even if Xhaka is struggling to keep it under wraps.
When asked after his side’s remarkable victory over France if he can do post-match interviews in Italian yet, the Arsenal player said: "Not yet… It is always interesting to learn a new language.
"Let’s see, everyone knows what Roma represent. Now, I am an Arsenal player, I will speak after the tournament."
Why are Arsenal selling Granit Xhaka?
Despite his remarkable form for the Swiss, most Arsenal fans would agree that Xhaka hasn’t been a consistent performer for their team for some time.
As neither an all-out attacking player or a stalwart defensive midfielder, Xhaka has struggled to define his role and thus his value to Mikel Arteta.
As such, very few Arsenal fans will likely regret the club cashing in on his talents this summer.
Another factor in Xhaka’s sale is the fact that the club have recently made a significant investments in a new midfield enforcer in the form of Thomas Partey, while having some exceptional youth prospects in the form of Joe Willock, Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe.
And if the club hope to try and sign Martin Odegaard this summer, they could certainly do with an extra €20m in their back pocket.
