Quotes from Granit Xhaka

I don't think Gladbach are on the same level as Arsenal.

I've had four beautiful years at Monchengladbach and owe the club a lot.

I play with a lot of emotion because I'm a passionate guy, and I play with that passion. I love playing that way. Sometimes you're late onto the ball, sometimes you're not. Sometimes you make contact with the guy when you tackle him, sometimes not. It's a sport where individual duels are vital, so I don't see it as a problem.

You have to be completely there in every game, and as soon as you drop your level even one per cent, you concede goals.

My brother was always going to go in the direction of football. With me, it was more between school and football. Eventually, it worked out for both of us. We're pleased to have gone down that path. I'm proud that my parents always supported us, in good and in bad times. You need that.

I compliment Kramer perfectly. We both put in a lot of legwork, win many balls, and we're comfortable with the ball at our feet. We also talk a lot both off and on the pitch.

Arsenal play attractive football, and I enjoy that. I think you could see against the MLS side that this team has a lot of quality, and we'll give our all to show that on the pitch.

London is really nice, and I'm really happy here, but, of course, I've moved here to play football and not just to be in the city.

I like to play football. I'm an aggressive player and also a leader.

It's aggressive, and I like the way Arsenal play football. It's not like other countries, but it's very, very nice here.

My goal is to become a key player in one of the ten best clubs in the world and become a leader there.

I never used to be taken seriously as a Swiss person.

I wouldn't change myself for anybody. I am who I am; people accept me, or they don't. I have my strengths and my weaknesses, which I can try to improve upon, of course. I'm still not the finished product.

I think, when a manager has been at a club for more than 20 years, he can only have a positive impact.

It's true that my father was imprisoned for three and a half years, and it was because he stood up for what he believed in. It's not a taboo subject in our household. We talk about it. After all, I want to know what happened.

I never hesitate to go into a tackle, and I don't go onto the pitch to pull out of a challenge.

I know I've made mistakes, and sometimes I've talked about things too openly or directly. That wasn't good, and I've learned from that.

Personally, I can handle criticism, especially when it is deserved, and it's because my dad never, ever said 'Well done' to me. He did it on purpose so that I kept my feet on the ground.

The Premier League is not my goal but a childhood dream. It is a dream that could be fulfilled.

Here in the Premier League, you have to give 100 per cent for the whole 90 minutes. It's not like after 70 minutes you can say, 'We're 2-0 up, so let's have some fun now' - that doesn't happen in the Premier League.

I remember I was young, and the first game I watched was in the Premier League. It's a big dream for me, and now that I'm here, I am very, very happy.

In Germany, you can play aggressively, but the referee will always blow his whistle, but in England, that's not the case. That's better for me.

What happens here, the daily agenda of Arsenal, is very different from what I experienced in Monchengladbach.

To have six years of professional football under my belt already is really something.