Report: Arsenal offered chance to sign ‘world-class’ ex-Tottenham man in swap deal

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According to a report from Corriere dello Sport, a swap deal between Arsenal’s Granit Xhaka and Inter Milan’s Christian Eriksen is in the works ahead of the January transfer window.

Eriksen was a star across North London at Tottenham but he left them in January this year. He joined Italian giants Inter Milan on a four-and-a-half-year deal, but that has proved to be a disastrous move.

The former Spurs star has started just 14 times since he joined the Nerazzurri. He has played just over 300 minutes so far this season, and it looks likely that he will consider his options in the January transfer window.

Inter boss Antonio Conte prefers a more defensive-minded midfielder. He has set his sights on Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante, but a move for the French World Cup winner is unreasonable at the moment.

As a result, Inter are looking at the possibility of signing Xhaka from Arsenal. The Swiss international was a key part of Mikel Arteta’s squad since the Spaniard took over, but he has been benched in our last two games.

He didn’t play a single minute in the games against Manchester United and Aston Villa, which raises the question if he is no longer a part of Arteta’s plans for the future.

Thomas Partey is an undisputed starter while Mohamed Elneny has been incredible this season. Dani Ceballos also seems to be ahead of Xhaka in the pecking order, while young Joe Willock is impressing every time he gets a chance in the first team.

Xhaka-Eriksen swap makes sense

At a moment when Arsenal are desperate for a creative midfielder, the links to Eriksen make sense. The Dane, described by Craig Bellamy as ‘world-class’ on Sky Sports two years ago, knows the Premier League inside out.

He is a proven commodity, and if a straight swap between Xhaka and Eriksen is an option, it does make sense to go through with it. The Dane would solve our creativity issues in the final third, and the move would annoy a lot of Tottenham fans, which would make the deal a whole lot sweeter.