Revealed: Why Granit Xhaka and wife Leonita Lekaj are returning to Arsenal as Bayer Leverkusen midfielder opens up on summer exit

The Swiss international plans to attend Arsenal's match against West Ham on December 28 and will use his visit to say a belated farewell after his summer transfer to Bayer Leverkusen.

In an interview with The Athletic, Xhaka opened up on his decision to leave north London and revealed how his departure would have come a lot sooner if it wasn't for Mikel Arteta.

Stripped of the Arsenal captaincy and seemingly on his way out of the club, Xhaka revealed the discussions that turned around his Arsenal career when Arteta took over as manager in December 2019.

“I could not imagine myself playing for Arsenal again," Xhaka explained. "I said to him, ‘I just want to be somewhere where the fans don’t boo me’. But he was so convincing. For the first time in my life, I took a decision without talking to my family first. I got up and said, ‘OK, I’ll stay’. We embraced and, from that day on, I returned to training and it was like nothing ever happened.”

Xhaka won his place back in the side and played his part as Arsenal pushed for the title last season, but in spring met with sporting director Edu, who was unwilling to offer a new contract. “On one hand I was a bit sad," said Xhaka. "But on the other hand I was also quite happy because I didn’t like that uncertainty.”

“Leverkusen’s plan for me was clear. Leaving Arsenal after seven years wasn’t easy on an emotional level after all the good and the bad things, but it was totally the right decision. I’m happy it worked out so well.”

On his plans to return for the West Ham game with his wife, Leonita Lekaj, the midfielder added: "It will be our chance to say goodbye to the players, the staff and the supporters properly.”

Xhaka rebirth at Arsenal was a truly remarkable turnaround. He lost the captaincy and was jeered by his own fans in late 2019, but Arteta's backing and his own steely determination saw him play a major role in the team's recent revival. He would end up featuring at the Emirates for another three seasons before leaving as a fan favourite.

The midfielder has featured in every single game of Leverkusen's astonishing start to the season which sees them unbeaten after 25 games across three competitions. He has to negotiate just one more game at home to Bochum tomorrow night before departing for a well-earned trip back to London to meet old friends.