'Unbelievable honestly': Paul Merson says he has so much admiration for player Arteta sold at Arsenal

07/04/2024 12:45 PM

Paul Merson has suggested that he cannot speak highly enough of one player Mikel Arteta sold at Arsenal, insisting that he has been ‘unbelievable’ since leaving the Emirates.

Mikel Arteta and Edu have got very little wrong in the transfer market since they started working together a few years ago, with Arsenal moving back into the Premier League title picture after a number of years in the wilderness by their standards.

But they have certainly not been afraid to make some brave calls when it comes to some of the players they have let go.

Of course, one of the moves which divided Arsenal fans involved Granit Xhaka, with the Swiss leaving for Bayer Leverkusen last summer after a turbulent spell in North London. He left at a stage when the midfielder had completely changed perceptions after being written off at various points.

Paul Merson says Arsenal got weaker after one player was sold

Xhaka has obviously had an amazing start to life with Leverkusen, and he has continued to impress with Switzerland at Euro 2024, with the team preparing to face England in the quarter-final this weekend.

Speaking on Football’s Greatest, Paul Merson has suggested that he has so much respect for the turnaround Xhaka has had, and claimed that Arsenal have missed him since he left.

“Unbelievable, honestly I can’t express how much, to be strong-minded like that, you talk about the England players, they’re all moaning because everybody’s having a go at them, he had 60,000 people booing him – of his own fans, that he’s got to play in front of every week. Not just an away fan who you might see him again at an FA Cup game in four months’ time, or once a year. And he turned that round to, when he left, the team got weakened. Lucky enough, they brought in Declan Rice, but he’s gone to Leverkusen, I can’t talk highly enough of the bloke,” he said.

“I’ve always thought he was a good player, I thought he was a bit loose in his decision-making on the pitch, the way he didn’t really read the game with getting yellows and silly reds, but never let the club down – and always played, always played, always there to play as well. And you’ve got to remember he played at Arsenal when it was on them, they weren’t very good, the crowd were on them and he was never injured, always turned up, always there to be picked, and I have so much admiration for that man, and he is a top, top player.”

The one question Gunners fans may have about last season

It would be interesting to know what would have happened had Arsenal held onto Xhaka for another year, given that the margins in the title race were so fine.

As Merson notes, the signing of Declan Rice made a big difference. And players like Jorginho and Thomas Partey had bright moments, but Arsenal fans would be forgiven for wondering what a partnership between Rice and Xhaka could have done.

Of course, only one of the two midfielders will be celebrating when they face off this weekend.