Xhaka close to Premier League return with Sunderland

Former Arsenal captain Granit Xhaka is close to a return to the Premier League with newly-promoted Sunderland.

Reports say that the Black Cats are close to a deal with Bayer Leverkusen for the 32-year-old as head coach Regis Le Bris seeks to add Premier League experience to his squad.

Switzerland international Xhaka, who began his career at Basel before heading for Borussia Monchengladbach, spent seven years with the Gunners and is well acquainted with England’s top flight.

He joined Arsenal for £35m from Monchengladbach during the summer of 2016 and made 297 appearances for the club, winning two FA Cups, before returning to Germany with Leverkusen in July 2023.

The determination from Granit Xhaka to get back and make the tackle 👏 pic.twitter.com/jIPHAxvJOy

— Premier League (@premierleague) May 11, 2023

He was part of Xabi Alonso’s Bundesliga-winning side in 2024 and made 49 appearances in all competitions, 10 of them in the Champions League, during the last campaign.

A combative player, Xhaka was stripped of the Arsenal captaincy in November 2019 after a heated exchange with home fans at the Emirates Stadium.

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