Sunderland captain Granit Xhaka has been speaking once more about his move to the Stadium of Light
Sunderland captain Granit Xhaka has admitted that “people were laughing” at him after he made the decision to join the Black Cats during the summer transfer window.
The veteran midfielder walked away from the promise of Champions League football with a highly successful Bayer Leverkusen side in Germany to embrace the challenge of skippering a recently promoted club in the Premier League, with many forecasting that he and his new teammates would be embroiled in a relegation battle this season.
Instead, of course, Regis Le Bris’ men have thrived in the top flight, with Xhaka himself earning plenty of plaudits for his influential displays in the heart of midfield, as well as his exemplary leadership qualities both on and off the pitch.
And in a fresh interview with BBC Sport, the Swiss international has spoken openly about the bemusement that many people expressed following his move to Wearside - and how he now feels fully vindicated in his decision to sign for Sunderland.
What did Granit Xhaka say about his transfer to Sunderland?
Looking back on a transformative summer, Xhaka said: “People were laughing at me, to be honest. Even the closest part of my friends said to me, ‘Why are you going back?’ They said, ‘Yeah, okay, you can go back to Premier League, but why are you going back to Sunderland?’
“I said, ‘Because I love the challenge’. And I had the feeling I needed a new challenge. After two years in Germany, where we won, in the first year, nearly everything - unbeaten in the Bundesliga, won the cup, lost the final in the Europa League, which was very painful. I just had the feeling with the owner [Kyril Louis-Dreyfus] when I spoke with them, with the club, with the coach, this is the right club for me.
“Because the people are very humble. It's a small city, where I grew up - I see exactly myself, how I grew up. And I just wanted to come back to the reality that I believed is the right direction for myself, for my family, and I'm just happy that everything at the moment went how I was looking for.”
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What is the latest on Granit Xhaka’s injury?
At the time of writing, Xhaka is sidelined through injury, and in a press conference on Thursday afternoon, Sunderland head coach Le Bris admitted that it is still not abundantly clear as to when he can be expected to return to first team action.
He explained: “No update on Granit yet, but he's doing well. He was running on the treadmill today, so it's positive.”
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