Unexpected transfer? Leverkusen are after the Arsenal star, but she’s having her best year since moving to England

Adam Hložek and Patrik Schick can breathe a sigh of relief. Leverkusen have managed to spark a crisis and are playing for European Cups instead of staying in. But they don’t want to repeat a similarly horrific year, so they want to strengthen in the summer. A very unexpected acquisition could arrive.

Bayer Leverkusen have had a very embarrassing season. After finishing third in the Bundesliga last season and Patrik Schick’s reputation as a key player got a big boost, things looked very bad at the start of the season.

Schick signed a new contract, his compatriot Adam Hložek was added to the team, they managed to keep Moussa Diaby and no one important left. Leverkusen claimed they wanted to win some trophies. But they were knocked out in the first round of the cup and the start of the league was terrible.

Schick didn’t do well, Hložek had to acclimatise. Diaby didn’t play badly, but he was almost alone. And so the team got a boost when Xabi Alonso took over. He proved his qualities and now Leverkusen is an aspirant to at least participate in the Conference League.

But Schick’s season is still in shambles, having missed a good part of it. Hložek has impressed Alonso, but he is not the first choice for any position yet. He’s certainly not doing badly for his first season in Germany though.

However, Leverkusen don’t want to experience a similarly bad start to the season and saving the season until the second half. The summer transfer window could look like this. If there is one thing Bayer lacks, it is a leader with a lot of experience.

And according to Sky Germany and the Daily Mirror, that’s exactly what the club would like to change. But according to both papers, they’re after an unexpected name. It’s Arsenal star Granit Xhaka. The Swiss is enjoying his best season since his arrival in England and is still fighting for the title.

Xhaka has a contract at Arsenal until the summer of 2024, but it includes an option to extend for another year. If Leverkusen really wanted to buy him, they would have to dig deep into their pockets and pay out around €20 million.

Moreover, it is questionable whether coach Mikel Arteta will want to give him up. After all, Xhaka is still only 30 years old, he still has some years ahead of him. It’s also not at all certain that the player himself will want to leave.

On the other hand, at least the Swiss wouldn’t be going to a completely unfamiliar environment. After all, he previously spent 4 years at Mönchengladbach.

Source: Sky Germany, Daily Mirror, Transfermarkt, WhoScored