Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka now has a new kind of pressure on him – TBR View

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There has been a bit of a love-hate relationship for Granit Xhaka during his time at Arsenal since he joined for £35million (BBC) back in 2016, but he’s been an important player at the Emirates Stadium and he is only 16 games short of 200 appearances for them.

The 28-year-old has been a nailed-on starter for much of his Gunners career and was a popular figure last season under manager Mikel Arteta.

Xhaka, who is the captain of Switzerland’s national side, is a left-footed central midfielder that likes to dictate possession in the Gunners midfield and he can provide a defensive screen for the back four.

But he may be under a new kind of pressure for his starting position for the first time in his Arsenal career.

Powerhouse midfielder Thomas Partey has made a brilliant start to life at Arsenal since he recent arrival and it looks like the 27-year-old is going to be a mainstay for the North London outfit moving forward.

But here has also been a resurgence in the form of forgotten man Mohamed Elneny.

Elneny, 28, is back in favour at Arsenal under manager Arteta and reports linking him with a new contract should be concerning for Xhaka, as it indicates one of his rivals for a starting position is in a great place.

According to the Daily Mail, Arsenal are lining up contract talks with their in-form midfielder Elneny and are looking to extend a deal that is currently set to expire in 2022.

Xhaka will now find himself battle for a position alongside the likes of Elneny, Partey and Dani Ceballos, which is now why he’s going to have to roll his sleeves up if he wants to be a main starter in the Premier League matches.

A Partey-Elneny combination certainly has much more dynamism and energy like it showed recently in a win against Manchester United, which is why plenty feel that could be a partnership to stick with moving forward.