'It was the right thing': Mikel Arteta does not regret selling 'exceptional' Arsenal star

Arsenal manager has spoken about Granit Xhaka for the first time since the Gunners midfielder left during the transfer window for Bayer Leverkusen.

Xhaka had a rollercoaster of a time at Arsenal. It first started out with him inconsistent and seemingly causing some issues for Arteta.

Following his famous reaction against Crystal Palace, he turned a corner and became an integral player for Arsenal.

Now, the Switzerland international has moved to the Bundesliga to play for Bayer Leverkusen. It is a move that would have shocked many.

It is a very interesting summer for Arsenal as they have confirmed the signings of Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber already.

Arsenal FC v Wolverhampton Wanderers - Premier League
Photo by Jack Thomas – WWFC/Wolves via Getty Images
Arteta happy to sell Xhaka
Despite Xhaka being a very solid player for Arsenal last season, if he wanted to move then it would have not been beneficial to let him stay.

When asked about Xhaka and why the midfielder left, Arteta said: “There are three parts to this.

“He had a clear desire that it was the right time and that it was a big big opportunity for him personally to move there.

“We had that conversation and at the end we all agreed that it was the right thing to move forward”.

It seems like it was a move which all parties were happy to agree too and that will be nice for fans of the club to hear.The ‘exceptional‘ midfielder will be missed but with the Gunners now challenging for the title and in the Champions League they need to increase the quality of their squad.

They are already working on this with the couple of signings they have made and no doubt they will be able to find a good replacement for Xhaka.

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