Granit Xhaka has been stripped of the Arsenal captaincy by Unai Emery, and Aubameyang has now taken up the role he should’ve been given in the first place.
You could see it coming from a mile away. On Tuesday, Unai Emery officially announced in his Europa League pre-match press conference, that Granit Xhaka had been stripped of the Arsenal captaincy following his incident with the Emirates crowd against Crystal Palace a few weeks ago. The captaincy has now been handed to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – the player it should have gone to in the first place.
Not to discredit Granit Xhaka’s leadership skills, because he clearly has them. He is captain of the Switzerland national team, which right now sits 13th in the world, and he captained Borussia Monchengladbach in his early 20’s.
He might very well be a leader off the pitch, but the issue with giving him the Arsenal captaincy over Aubameyang initially, was that Xhaka hardly ever leads by example on the football pitch. On the other hand, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang does exactly that, and on a weekly basis no less.
It’s no secret that this Arsenal team are currently deprived of leaders. Aubameyang was never considered a leader at his previous clubs, but because Arsenal lack those powerful figures in the team, his goalscoring prowess is what has turned him into a leader at the Emirates.
Arsenal have removed Xhaka from the captaincy group. Aubameyang is now club captain. A decision that perhaps should have been made at the start of the season, let alone a week ago.
— gunnerblog (@gunnerblog) November 5, 2019
In truth, Unai Emery’s team would probably already be out of the top 4 picture if not for the Gabonese international – his goals have carried them to where they currently sit. When you look around the Arsenal XI, only Aubameyang and Guendouzi truly lead by example, and it’s no coincidence that the 2 of them have been by far Arsenal’s best players this season, and single-handedly won them a few matches from losing positions.
The return of Hector Bellerin will also aid Arsenal’s leadership on the pitch, and the fan-favourite Spaniard will now take up the role of vice captain.
Granit Xhaka has been left out of the Gunners squad by Unai Emery for their Europa League clash on Wednesday, and it remains to be seen whether he will feature against Leicester on the weekend. This is certainly an intriguing storyline to follow, as we look to see how Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang fares as Arsenal captain, less than 2 years after joining the club.