Granit Xhaka reveals he was attracted to ‘suffering and solidarity’ of Sunderland project | OneFootball

In an interview with Swiss newspaper Blick, Granit Xhaka has spoken on his decision to leave Bayer Leverkusen and join Sunderland this summer. The Swiss international made clear that his new Leverkusen head coach Erik ten Hag was not the reason he left the Bundesliga and returned to the Premier League

Xhaka simply opted to answer the call when Swiss billionaire Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and Sunderland’s sporting management entered the picture. He made his choice to head to the newly promoted Premier League outfit after a quick FaceTime call.

“The club reminds me of my parents’ beginnings: rising up from nothing,” Xhaka – as quoted by Kicker – said. “And I feel that this experience here will benefit me most for my future. I want to pursue a career as a coach at some point. That’s why it’s important to experience moments of suffering and solidarity. We’re going to have to suffer a lot in the coming months. That’s a different side of football, but it’s also part of it and it will shape me.

“It annoys me that Erik [ten Hag] is being portrayed as the problem,” Xhaka also noted. “He was never the problem. Never! I had good conversations with him. I would have played under him as captain. I never unequivocally said that I wanted to leave. I was looking for an exiting offer, but only if it was a good fit for me, my family, and Leverkusen. If I wanted to leave at all costs, I wouldn’t have flown to training camp in Brazil.”

GGFN | Peter Weis