Granit Xhaka's redemption arc at Arsenal was the stuff that Hollywood would buy into and gobble up.
It was a remarkable turnaround. Think Severus Snape in Harry Potter, even Darth Vader in Star Wars. This was a story capable of matching both of the most famous villains in movie history.
The date was 27th October 2019 and as the Swiss midfielder was substituted by Unai Emery, his days at the Emirates looked numbered.
Xhaka was the club captain at the time but as supporters inside the stadium jeered and booed him off the park, the armband was thrown to the floor in disgust. The now 31-year-old gesticulated at fans and was visibly angry. Surely there was no way back for this enigmatic character?
Lo and behold, he's now adored by Arsenal fans. His redemption act under Mikel Arteta was a joy to see.
How Granit Xhaka redeemed himself
Arteta has revolutionised the way this Arsenal team think. Now mentally strong, it's a far cry from the forlorn squads we saw in the latter days of Arsene Wenger's reign and Emery's torrid tenure in north London.
They are yet to topple Manchester City as the greatest club side in the land just yet, but oh how close they came in 2022/23. Just five points separated the Gunners and the Citizens come last May, and now just a point divides the two in 2023/24.
Games
Goals
Assists
Key passes p/g
Tackles p/g
Yellow cards
32
2
2
1.1
2.4
5
38
1
7
1
2.1
10
29
4
2
1.4
1.8
10
31
1
2
0.5
1.5
10
31
1
2
0.5
1.6
7
27
1
2
1.2
1.2
10
37
7
7
1.3
0.9
5
A large reason for the club's success last term was Xhaka. Deployed as an advanced number 8, the Switzerland star was freed from his defensive role which had seen him cause so much chaos throughout the years.
The £25m signing was known as a liability. During his time in N5 Xhaka picked up five red cards and 76 yellows. That doesn't make for great reading at all.
Yet, in his final campaign as an Arsenal player before moving onto pastures new, the club's number 34 wasn't sent off once. It was also the best goalscoring season of his career. Nine times Xhaka scored in Arsenal red, crashing the ball home from long range but also ghosting into the penalty area like Frank Lampard in his prime.
If you wanted any more reason to celebrate this redemption, he also registered seven assists in all competitions last season. Arsenal had come so close to winning the league and Xhaka was finally a hero in the English capital.
To see him leave for Bayer Leverkusen, therefore, was a hard one to swallow. In his stead, Kai Havertz has been signed; the less said about that the better.
Xhaka's statistics after leaving Arsenal
It won't come as any great surprise that after returning to the Bundesliga, Xhaka has taken German football by storm.
Playing under the watchful and imaginative guidance of former Liverpool star Xabi Alonso, Leverkusen are yet to lose a single game this season. They sit atop Germany's highest division on 31 points and are three ahead of Harry Kane's Bayern Munich. Wouldn't it be quite the story if Xhaka denied Tottenham's record goalscorer his first league title?
Under Alonso, the midfielder's role has changed again. He's not free-scoring at all – failing to find the net all season. However, the bullish midfielder is still topping the charts in a variety of metrics.
That stat will particularly sting for those of an Arsenal persuasion when you consider Havertz's dismal start to life in north London. The German has only scored once – from the penalty spot – since moving from Chelsea and cuts a dejected figure on the pitch.
Anything he does is rarely completed with confidence and this mega £65m move is looking more bizarre by the minute. That said, having starred as a left-back over the international break with his country, perhaps a Xhaka-like revival could be on the cards in an unfamiliar role.
Average
Rank in Bundesliga
Kai Havertz's PL average
94.84
Top 1%
29.62
92.4%
Top 1%
81.6%
11.82
Top 1%
2.65
101.26
Top 1%
35.80
110.94
Top 1%
46.76
The Bundesliga star outscoring Xhaka
As it happens, there are a number of former Arsenal stars plying their trade in the German top flight. The most notable example is Serge Gnabry, a man with 82 Bayern Munich goals to his name
He's made the Gunners seriously regret not holding onto him all those years ago, now valued at an eye-watering £48m by Transfermarkt. Imagine him and Bukayo Saka wreaking havoc, that's all we're saying there.
However, there's another tricky winger who deserves equal attention. Enter stage right, Nathan Tella. Who, you may ask? Rightfully so. However, this former Hale End product is emerging as a serious talent.
Now 24, the Stevenage-born wideman was released by Arsenal after ten years in the academy in 2017. His next destination was Southampton but he never quite made the grade on the South Coast.
Tella only featured 44 times for the Saints, scoring three goals in that time. It was a loan spell at Burnley last term that really made him.
Starring under Vincent Kompany's Clarets as they surged to promotion from the Championship, Tella found the net 19 times in 45 outings. It was a red-hot campaign and there was no way he was sticking around for Southampton's second-tier experience.
A £20m move followed to none other than Xhaka and Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen. A bit-part asset to the side to date – yet to make his first start in the Bundesliga – but he's still caught the eye in glimpses.
Indeed, with two goals in all competitions for Leverkusen across 335 league and European minutes, he has scored more than the aforementioned Swiss and impressively, more than Gnabry.
Tella's start to life in Leverkusen may well have been slow but it surely won't be long before this once-Arsenal starlet begins to enjoy life a little bit more overseas.
