Why Liverpool should target Granit Xhaka

Granit Xhaka

The summer transfer window was an exciting period for Swiss youngster Granit Xhaka. The 21-year-old has been linked with a move away from current club Borussia Monchengladbach, with Everton one of the clubs contending for his signature.

But perhaps the blue half of Merseyside is not the ideal destination for Xhaka, and instead club rivals Liverpool would be a more ideal situation. Brendan Rodgers’ policy of promoting youth would suit the midfielder perfectly, providing the perfect place to see him develop fully.

The youngster has been making the headlines recently, having scored a screamer for Switzerland in a 1-0 victory over Slovenia. He has been compared to Germany’s Bastian Schweinsteiger by national coach Ottmar Hitzfeld, and his performances at both club and international level will have attracted the attention of many top European sides.

Although he is still young, Xhaka has been involved in seven of Gladbach’s eight Bundesliga matches so far this season and despite the fact his league performances being fairly average, we have witnessed brief glimpses of quality. Glimpses that suggest he has the potential to become a quality player in the near future.

Having earned a total Squawka Performance Score of 70 points, Xhaka’s best display this season came during a 4-1 win against Werder Bremen. In this fixture, he registered his first assist of the season – his long pass put Juan Arango through on goal, enabling him to score the opening goal of the match.

Granit Xhaka Total Chances Created

In fact, the Swiss’ creativity and eye for a pass are some of the best aspects of his overall game. With a pass accuracy of 88%, he would fit seamlessly into the Liverpool midfield, especially considering Brendan Rodger’s philosophy of short, sharp passing football. When compared to the Red’s current playing options, Xhaka’s statistics would rank him among the top 4 best passers in the team.

Granit Xhaka Duels Won

His ability to take on an opponent is also rather impressive. Having attempted 12 dribbles so far this season, Xhaka has been successful 83% of the time. This demonstrates the fantastic close control he has. Whether or not he can transgress this skill to the Premier League is another question altogether.

Despite these positives, Xhaka has shown a certain number of limitations to his current level of performance. His shooting for example is below par. With an shot accuracy of just 20%, it becomes fairly obvious to see exactly why the 21-year-old has failed to score so far this campaign. This, alongside his precision accuracy last season (22%), suggests his goalscoring ability is far inferior to the aforementioned aspects of his game.

Granit Xhaka Shot Accuracy

Obviously at such a young age Xhaka has ample time to develop and improve himself as a player. Whilst Liverpool already have a top class attacking midfielder in the form of Philippe Coutinho, I’m sure Brendan Rodgers would jump at the chance to sign Xhaka should the opportunity arise. The established characteristics of his playing style would fit the Anfield-mould superbly and under the guidance of the Northern Irish manager, he would fulfill his full potential. The young midfielder is a fantastic prospect and it’s only a matter of time until Europe’s most reputable clubs start knocking on his door.

??Football graphics and stats from Squawka?