The Swiss midfielder admits he would not jump at the opportunity to direct the Gunners again after a tricky experience with the armband earlier this term.
Granit Xhaka has shown how close he came to leaving Arsenal in January, while also confessing he’d have reservations over captaining Arsenal again later on.
Unai Emery called Xhaka as Arsenal’s new permanent captain after the death of Laurent Koscielny in the summer transfer window, having requested the squad to vote on their favorite candidate.
The Switzerland international only lasted a couple of months in the role, however, after an incident with the club’s supporters during a 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace in the Emirates Stadium on October 27.
Xhaka reacted angrily to being booed by fans as he left the pitch as a substitute, telling them to “f**k off” before storming down the tunnel.
The 27-year-old was stripped of the captaincy a couple of days afterward, and Emery proceeded to leave him out of the group until he was relieved of his managerial responsibilities near the end of December.
Emery’s successor Mikel Arteta has restored Xhaka into Arsenal’s beginning line-up, but the midfielder has distanced himself from a different spell with the armband in the future.
“I understand with or without the armband that which I could give the group,” he told the Evening Standard.
“But in this moment [against Palace] I do not wish to spend the armband back, but Sokratis [Papastathopoulos] and David [Luiz] told me that I need to take it.
“If one day the club asks me about the armband, I must think twice.”
When asked if he considered leaving the Emirates during the last transfer window, Xhaka responded: “Obviously, I do not lie. There was a moment since it wasn’t easy for me and my loved ones. I hope people know this.
“But I believe I showed my personality. I’m not a man who runs away. I say to the club,’When I [am] here, I am prepared to provide everything’. It had been like this always. I train really hard and things turned around is the key. This [has given me] the most happiness.”
Xhaka, who joined Arsenal from Borussia Monchengladbach in 2016, went on to explore the gap the Premier League and the Bundesliga concerning how players have the ability to interact with fans.
“On one side I know the fans because they always need the players to do, but on the other side, they must know us as well. It’s not always simple,” he added.
“I feel this is the biggest difference [between] Germany and England, because [here] we do not have the [close] connection with the fans. In Germany for instance, you’ve got open training sessions, [where] the fans come and [talk to you], ask you why.
“Here, everything is shut. So, for me, it would be great this opportunity to explain to the folks what isn’t going bad or good. However, it doesn’t matter today. Now we must enjoy, that is the most important [thing].”
