Biography of Granite Xhaka

Nicknamed ‘Young Schweinsteiger’ by Swiss soccer manager and former German player Ottmar Hitzfield, Granit Xhaka is an emerging midfielder for Arsenal FC . His playing style is usually aggressive and he is the leader on the field. He was appointed captain of the Monchengladbach team at the age of 23 in the 2015/16 season. Before that, Gladbach had the worst start to the season losing five opening games of the season and after the captaincy against Xhaka they finished the season with qualification for the Champions League. Granit Xhaka is also famous for his long-range shots from midfield. Most of his goals in an Arsenal shirt are a ranger effort from outside the box. Aside from his power play from midfield, Xhaka is an aggressive player on the pitch and has received nine red cards in just three years. He is originally from Albania and his blood brother represents the Albanian national team while Granit Xhaka represents the Swiss national team.

Early life and career of Granit Xhaka

Granit Xhaka was born in Basel, Switzerland to father Ragip Xhaka and mother Elmaze Xhaka on September 27, 1992. Her parents were originally from Serbia and emigrated to Switzerland due to the Civil War.

Xhaka’s older brother Taulante Xhaka is also a footballer who plays for FC Basel and the Albanian national team. Both brothers joined FC Basel ‘s youth academy as teenagers. Since 2008 Granit Xhaka was promoted to the Basel Under-21 team in which he played 37 games and scored 11 goals.

At the beginning of the 2010/11 season, Xhaka was promoted to the first team of FC Basel . He made his first-team debut in the 2010/11 UEFA Champions League qualifier against Debrecen in which he scored a goal in a 2-0 win. His first league goal for FC Basel came against FC Thun in a 5-1 win. In his 2 years at FC Basel in the senior team he scored 2 goals and won two Leagues and one Swiss Cup.

Granit Xhaka Career

In May 2012, Xhaka was transferred to the German club. Borussia Monchengladbach at an undisclosed fee estimated to be around $10 million. On August 25, he made his Bundesliga debut in a 2-1 win against 1899 Hoffenheim. He scored his only goal of the season against FC Nurnberg in a 3-2 loss. He stayed in Gladbach until the 2015/16 season and made 140 appearances for the club scoring 9 goals in the process.

Xhaka also appeared in Euro 2016. In the match against Albania, he was playing against his brother Taulant, who was playing for the Albanian national team. Switzerland reached the round of 16 of the tournament, eventually losing to Poland. In his 61 appearances for the Swiss national team, he scored nine goals.

Granit Xhaka ratio and salary

Granit Xhaka receives $121,555 a week in salary from Arsenal FC . His net worth is estimated to be around $15 million which she receives mainly through her salaries from Arsenal FC and through various endorsements and contracts. It is reported that she also bought a house in London worth $6 million.

He was signed by the American shoe company Under Armor in an endorsement deal. Financial reports for the deals were not released. It also has a big no. from car collections including BMW, Porsche, Audi and Mercedes.

Granite Xhaka’s personal life

Granit Xhaka is married to Leonita Lekaj in July 2017. Like Xhaka, he is also from the Kosovo-Albanian Family. The two met during Xhaka’s time in Mönchengladbach, where Leonita worked as a staff.

Granit Xhaka’s father, Ragip Xhaka, was sentenced to three years in prison for protesting against the Yugoslav communist regime in Kosovo. Xhaka’s mother, Elmaze, is Swiss, but since her two sons play with different nationalities, she is a neutral fan and is often seen with her daughter-in-law during a soccer game in the stance.

The two are reported to be in a close relationship. Granit Xhaka also has a little sister named Agnesa Xhaka. Granit Xhaka is a Muslim by religion.