'I reached boiling point,' Gunners captain Granit Xhaka releases heartfelt statement following outburst against Crystal Palace
Arsenal skipper Granit Xhaka has finally broken his silence regarding the chain of events that unfolded after his substitution against Crystal Palace. The Swiss midfielder was substituted with the scores tied 2-2 after the Gunners had let a two-goal slip at the Emirates. In the wake of his angry confrontation with the fans, the midfielder released an elaborate statement and explained what triggered the outburst.
Xhaka has come under immense scrutiny numerous times in his Arsenal career and the midfielder was met by a series of loud boos upon being substituted in the weekend, which triggered an outburst from the Swiss international.
“The scenes that took place around my substitution have moved me deeply. I love this club and always give 100% on and off the pitch.”
The 27-year-old made his feelings cleared after being booed by the home fans and went on to blame the fans for the angry outburst, citing a number of reasons. Although he acknowledged that his actions could have been avoided, he went on to claim that he had reached boiling point, adding that some of the abuse directed towards him was unfair.
"People have said things like ‘We will break your legs’, ‘Kill your wife’ and ‘Wish that your daughter gets cancer’. That has stirred me up and I reached boiling point when I felt the rejection in the stadium on Sunday."
The former Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder finally broke his silence after the events that unfolded and went on to reveal that he is 100% committed to the club irrespective of what went down in the past week.
"I let myself get carried away and reacted in a way that disrespected the group of fans that support our club, our team and myself with positive energy. That has not been my intention and I’m sorry if that’s what people thought. My wish is to get back to a place of mutual respect, remembering why we fell in love with this game in the first place. Let’s move forward positively together.”
Xhaka was not part of the matchday squad as Arsenal suffered elimination at the hands of Liverpool in the Carabao Cup but Unai Emery is set to recall the club captain this weekend, as the Gunners prepare to host Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League.