Arsenal fans have reacted angrily to Granit Xhaka throwing the captains armband on the ground before appearing to goad the supporters as he slowly walked off the pitch in the draw versus Crystal Palace.
Xhaka, ever since his arrival at the Emirates Stadium, has been a controversial and divisive figure with many feeling he doesn’t warrant a place in the Gunners’ starting eleven. Add to that, he was recently named as the club’s captain against the wishes of the wider fan base and his fractious relationship with the supporters has worsened.
Sunday’s incident left both the supporters and the player himself visibly angry and prompted sections of the fanbase to take to social media and voice their disapproval of the captain’s actions.
Not my captain ??
— ??????? ? (@iamhersi_) October 27, 2019
I hope he is heading straight back to Switzerland. You can’t do that when you are the captain? NEVER. Emery too must go.
— Nelson Denzel (@TheOnlyKirui) October 27, 2019
Whilst others were quick to condemn the actions of the supporters.
Wenger told the Arsenal fans they were the custodians of the club’s values.
Didn’t see much of them in the way Xhaka was just treated.
Not justifying his response, but come on guys. Be better.
— gunnerblog (@gunnerblog) October 27, 2019
Still absolutely gutted by yesterday’s actions by so called “fans”.
It’s been a constant tunnel of abuse to Granit Xhaka years on end and it’s simply unjust.
People’s lack of understanding equates to anger towards an easy target, the issue is and always has been Emery.
— ??? ??? (@WozAfc) October 28, 2019
Others are pointing the finger at Unai Emery for putting Xhaka in the firing line.
That’s bad from Xhaka but awful game management from the manager who made him the lightning rod as captain.
It’s also bad because Xhaka turning against the fans has an impact in the dressing room. He’s popular there.
What a mess.
— The Beautiful Groan (@beautifulgroan) October 27, 2019
In all this Xhaka hysteria, let’s not forget where the real issue lies…Unai Emery.
He’s the one that dithered over this five captain saga, handing it to a player who already wasn’t a big hit with fans, putting even more pressure on him.
Not my manager.— Mike Stavrou (@Mike_Stavrou) October 28, 2019
What do we think?
Arsenal supporters had hoped that when Arsene Wenger announced he would step down from his position after 22 years that would be the end of the conflict on the terraces and amongst the supporters. However, that’s proven not to be the case.
It’s safe to say most have taken an issue with Xhaka’s reaction to the crowd’s ironic cheers and the jeering he was on the receiving end of. But many acknowledge that there are underlying issues and that part of the blame should lay at the feet of their Spanish manager who continues to select him. The Swiss international has featured in nine of the Gunners’ 10 Premier League games so far.
It remains to be seen whether Xhaka will be able to restore his relationship with the supporters given it was already in the balance. The supporters will be awaiting some form of apology from their skipper but with no sign of anything yet, their patience will be wearing thin.