Granit Xhaka

SAFC Stats Insight — generated from our data

Granit Xhaka, the Swiss midfielder, made 37 appearances for Sunderland. He found the net 1 time, averaging 0.03 goals per game. His most prolific season in our data was 2025-26, with 1 goal. He also set up 6 goals for team-mates in our match data. In our match data he features from 2025 to 2026. More of his recorded appearances came under Régis Le Bris than any other manager — 37 in all. Among the bigger results he featured in was a 3-0 win over West Ham United at home in 2025. He lined up alongside Robin Roefs more than any other team-mate in our data, the two starting 32 games together. Across 36 matches we hold detailed data for, his average match rating is 7.34.

Figures are from our match-by-match data, densest from 2010 onward.

Granit Xhaka ( Albanian: [gɾanit d͡ʒaka] , born 27 September 1992) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for and captains both Premier League club Sunderland and the Switzerland national team . Xhaka began his career with Basel and won the Swiss Super League twice. He moved to Borussia Mönchengladbach in 2012, developing a reputation as a technically gifted player and natural leader alongside criticism for his temperament, and acted as club captain from 2015, twice leading the team to UEFA Champions League qualification. Xhaka signed for Premier League club Arsenal in 2016 for a fee in the region of £30 million, making nearly 300 appearances over seven years, serving as captain, and winning two FA Cups . In 2023, he returned to the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen , helping the club to their first-ever league title in his debut season. Xhaka was part of the Swiss team that won the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup . He made his senior debut in 2011 and is currently the nation's record appearance holder , with 152 caps . He represented Switzerland at four FIFA World Cups ( 2014 , 2018 , 2022 and 2026 ) and three UEFA European Championships ( 2016 , 2020 and 2024 ). — Wikipedia

Position: MF
Nationality: Switzerland
Birthplace: Basel
Born: 27 Sept 1992
Height: 185 cm

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At Sunderland

On 30 July 2025, Xhaka returned to England, signing for newly promoted Premier League side Sunderland on a three-year contract for a reported initial fee of £13 million, with an additional £4 million in add-ons. [ 65 ] [ 66 ] Afterwards, he was named as Sunderland captain by head coach Régis Le Bris ahead of the 2025–26 season . [ 67 ] Later that year, on 3 November, he scored his first goal in a 1–1 draw with Everton . [ 68 ] He eventually captained the newly promoted side to a place in the Europa League after they finished seventh in the league. [ 69 ] — Wikipedia

Career

Switzerland national under-17 association football team (2008–09)→Switzerland national under-18 association football team (2009–10)→Switzerland national under-21 football team (2010–11)→FC Basel (2010–12)→Switzerland national under-19 association football team (2010–11)→Switzerland men's national football team (2011)→Borussia Mönchengladbach (2012–16)→Arsenal F.C. (2016–23)→Bayer 04 Leverkusen (2023–25)→Sunderland A.F.C. (2025)

Club Legend Score

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Match record (2010–present)

Appearances

Goals

Assists2010+

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