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The Gunners midfielder returned to the side after his three-game suspension and scored in a 3-1 win against Chelsea
Granit Xhaka was happy to silence her critics with her scoring performance during Arsenal’s 3-1 win against Chelsea on Boxing Day.
The Swiss international was playing his first game since being sent off against Burnley on 13 December and marked the occasion with an impressive performance, as Arsenal claimed their first victory in seven Premier League games.
Xhaka hit a wonderful free kick just before half-time to complement Alexandre Lacazette’s penalty and was praised by coach Mikel Arteta for his performance in midfield.
It was the perfect response from the 28-year-old, who has received much criticism in recent weeks following his red card against Burnley and his lack of public apology for the incident that led to a 1-0 home loss.
“There was a lot of talk after the red card,” Xhaka said. “A lot of people started talking again… and over and over again.
“I will always show my character. I was very disappointed in my red card and knew that what I did was wrong for me. But I am more than happy. I helped the team and I’m back ”.
Xhaka added: “We knew it would be a very difficult game, but we work very well together as a team and at the moment we can only score points if we do this.
“We carried out the plan that the coach gave us. Press, stay focused 95 minutes. We scored at the right time and going 3-0 up helped a lot ”.
Arsenal’s victory against Chelsea saw them rise to 14th place in the Premier League and surpass six points from the relegation zone.
The victory was the first in the league since a 1-0 win at Manchester United on November 1 and helped ease the pressure on Arteta, who had been criticized for his team’s terrible form streak.
Arteta’s side are now heading into two crucial away games in Brighton and West Brom and Xhaka says the win against Chelsea will count for little if they don’t follow through.
“It was very important that we had three points [against Chelsea] but we have to continue like this, ”he said.
“The next two away games are very difficult, but if we work together as a team, we have a chance to win all six points.”
