"He just kept the ball moving; they couldn’t get near him" - Alan Shearer praises ex-Arsenal star's performances at Euro 2024

Premier League all-time top-scorer Alan Shearer has waxed lyrical of former Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka for his performances for Switzerland at the ongoing Euro 2024 in Germany. The Swiss beat defending champions Italy 2-0 to reach the quarterfinals, where they face England on Saturday (July 6) in Frankfurt.

Xhaka, 31, is coming off a superb season back in German football after a seven-season stint at the Emirates. He bagged four goals and two assists in 50 games across competitions as Bayer Leverkusen won the domestic double, with their only loss of the season coming to Atalanta in the UEFA Europa League final.

Following his stellar club exploits, the midfielder is flourishing at the European Championships, where Switzerland went unbeaten in Group A, finishing two points behind group winners Germany before beating the Azzurri in the Round of 16.

Lavishing praise on Xhaka and his team, Shearer said on Match of the Day on BBC 1 (as per HITC):

“Everyone knows their job. You could tell that how well organised and how well drilled they were. When they wanted to press, they all went and were fit enough to do that.

“When you are on the ball. You have to have quality, and they certainly had that. Xhaka ran and bossed the midfield. Everything was so simple. He just kept the ball moving. They couldn’t get near him. Every time they come for him, he passed it on. They were too late and slow.”

Switzerland are looking to reach a major tournament semifinal for the first time, having lost in the quarterfinals at Euro 2020, losing on penalties to Spain after a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes.

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How many Arsenal players have reached the Euro 2024 quarterfinals?

Declan Rice (left) is still active at Euro 2024.

Arsenal have had 11 players turning out for various teams at the ongoing Euro 2024. Among them, six of them are still active, having reached the quarterfinals of the competition.

The group includes the England trio of Aaron Ramsdale, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka, William Saliba of France, Kai Havertz of Germany and David Raya of Spain. While the Three Lions will be up against Switzerland in the last-eight, France will be up against Portugal, while Germany take on Spain in a blockbuster clash.

Two more Arsenal players - Leandro Trossard (Belgium) and Jorginho (Italy) - also reached the Euro 2024 knockouts but are out of the competition. Belgium lost 1-0 to France, while Italy fell to Switzerland, as mentioned above.