Arsenal's Granit Xhaka has been hailed on TalkSport by Dean Saunders following his continued improvement under Mikel Arteta.
Can Arsenal be stopped?
It has been a season to remember in north London for Arteta's side with the Premier League title seemingly theirs to be lost at this stage of the season.
With Manchester City playing in the FA Cup over the weekend, the Gunners were able to open up an eight-point gap on Pep Guardiola's men.
City do have one game in hand on the north London side, however, any slip-ups from the reigning champions now feel like it could make the task of retaining their title almost impossible – given Arsenal's form.
And one man at the centre of this Arsenal title push is Xhaka who has been hailed by Saunders on TalkSport on Monday morning following another impressive display at the Emirates Stadium:
"I never thought I'd this, but I might have to change my mind on him [Xhaka]. I thought he's a complete liability. I mean, red cards, booked every week you could have a bet on him to get a yellow card.
"He's changed altogether and I know he's playing in there with Thomas Partey and [Martin] Odegaard and it suits him. He gets forward a bit more. He scored a great goal yesterday [Sunday]. I'm changing my mind."
Can Xhaka be upgraded?
Just a couple of years ago it felt as if Xhaka's time in north London could be coming to an end having been stripped of the captain's armband.
However, this season has certainly been a testament to him not giving up under Arteta with the Switzerland international putting on a show for the Arsenal fans.
The 30-year-old has played in all 28 of Arsenal's Premier League games this season; proving a reliable option for Arteta amid Thomas Partey's injury issues.
And in those games, the midfielder has been able to provide a healthy return of four goals and five assists in the Premier League alone (via Transfermarkt).
However, the Gunners have been linked with big money moves for Moises Caicedo and Declan Rice ahead of the summer transfer widow.
Off the bat, the two potential summer targets would offer Arteta with longer-term options in comparison to the 30-year-old Swiss midfielder.
However, the current Arsenal man has fallen well short of the defensive returns which both Caicedo and Rice have offered their respective clubs this season (via Fbref).
Xhaka has, though, provided more of an attacking threat than both of the Premier League midfielders this season with a higher return of goals and assists than the pair combined.
So perhaps Rice of Caicedo could potentially be viewed as a more suitable replacement for Partey, but that does feel unlikely given how highly the Ghanaian is rated in north London.
