'I feel like I have to impress him as much as the manager': How Granit Xhaka became Sunderland's driving force - and the owner's crucial intervention that convinced him to join

First impressions: they have always mattered to Granit Xhaka, right through his life and certainly during the years he has spent in the Premier League.

He knew, for instance, that he had to be true to himself when arriving at Arsenal in 2016. During his first few days, which coincided with the club's pre-season tour to America's West Coast, Xhaka was introduced to the daunting ritual of singing for his new team-mates.

With a limited command of English, Xhaka decided to sing a traditional Albanian song. Nobody in the room understood what he was belting out – he knew that would be the case – but Xhaka did it with such gusto and passion, in a hotel in San Jose, that his new team-mates were quickly on board. They loved his character and welcomed him with open arms.

Xhaka was 23 then, burning with ambition. He's 33 now but the desire to get things right with new colleagues was such that when he strode purposefully into the Academy Of Light in July, the Swiss saw a familiar face – and proceeded to bowl him over.

'That team, back then, was full of stars and I was just a kid,' Dan Ballard, the Sunderland defender once of Arsenal, tells Daily Mail Sport. 'But there he was, fitting straight in – a leader. I was just a scholar but he remembered me, which was just so surprising.

'It speaks volumes for the type of guy that he is. I was a lot smaller and younger back then! But that first morning this summer, he walks into our dressing room and he starts having a chat with me, asking how I am doing. It was such a nice gesture to do but a measure of his character.

'The more I have got to know him, the more I can see it's just how he is as a guy. We are still quite a young team, young players with not much experience. But I've been surprised with how much of an impact he has had on us all. I didn't think one player could have that big of an impact on a team.'

But he has: Xhaka has been so crucial, such a pivotal figure, that during Sunderland's brilliant start to the campaign, his energy and influence has invited debate as to whether he was the best signing made during the summer window.

Regis Le Bris, Sunderland's head coach, was asked that question outright on Monday night, following the 1-1 draw with Everton. The point had been secured by Xhaka sweeping in a left-footed drive (albeit with the help of a deflection) 40 seconds into the second half.

'There are many good players in the Premier League,' Le Bris replied. 'But we love Granit. He is really important and he enjoys playing with us. I am not surprised about what he is doing – he wants us to be competitive.'

You can guarantee that will be the case on Saturday evening. Xhaka comes face-to-face with Arsenal for the first time since 2023 and the fact this fixture presents an opportunity to analyse the impact he has made shows how far his career has progressed.

There was a time when the words 'Xhaka' and 'Arsenal' in the same sentence were an invitation for you to think of confrontation and opprobrium, of a frazzled player combusting and a fanbase behaving abysmally, doing what supporters should never do: turning on their own.

It was October 27, 2019 – Arsenal had squandered a two-goal lead against Crystal Palace and drew 2-2; Xhaka was substituted by Unai Emery and, as he trudged away, the Emirates sarcastically cheered his departure. He responded by cupping his ears in rage. Watch the video of it again now – it is impossible not to feel sympathy for him.

'It was the worst day of my life in football,' Xhaka told The Athletic's Michael Walker earlier this week. 'But it was also the best day of my life. From this moment, I took many positives. I saw many things that were not real, even friends and people around me.

'I don't think everyone there was a proper Arsenal fan. But I was still learning and I learned from it. I call it a misunderstanding between myself and the fans. I don't need to lie about it. Everyone knows the story.'

How the story has gone since then, however, is fascinating. Xhaka could have disappeared into the sunset in January 2020, as he had another club looking to sign him and he was intent on leaving London, but Mikel Arteta's arrival changed the landscape.

Arteta rebuilt his confidence and made him an important figure; Xhaka's character was exemplary and he helped Arsenal win the FA Cup six months later. They would spend another three years together before he was allowed to move to Bayer Leverkusen, where Xabi Alonso made him a kingpin in his team.

Alonso understood the importance of having unity within the squad. Each day began with breakfast for the players on the third floor of the BayArena before training and Xhaka was always at the forefront, coaxing the best out of emerging young talents such as Florian Wirtz.

That first campaign ended with Xhaka plundering the only goal in the DBF Pokal final against Kaiserslautern, crowning the greatest domestic season in German football history – Leverkusen were the unbeaten double winners and Xhaka one of their main men.

So for Sunderland to be able to bring him to Wearside 12 months later was a remarkable coup. Xhaka could have gone elsewhere but Sunderland's young owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus was hugely influential, spending many hours on the phone to get the deal done.

Dreyfus rang Le Bris when Sunderland were on tour in the United States to say the deal had been done and, while it is still early days, this might just prove to be the best signing the club have made since the turn of the century.

The numbers back it up: Xhaka leads the squad in terms of most assists (three), most chances created (16), most successful passes (459), most successful passes in the final third (135) and duels won (62) – all this for an initial £13million.

So, yes, there will be mixed emotions when he sees Arteta and Arsenal again but there will be no question that Xhaka will be the one running into the team at full speed, determined to set the tone from the first minute. It's the only way he knows how to play.

'We all feed off each other and we want to stay in the games until the last minute,' says Ballard. 'We know how tough things are going to be but we want to keep that edge and Granit definitely helps give that to us, the ability to keep fighting.

'He is a great motivator and he gets everyone up for the games. Everyone has lifted their standards, as soon as he walked into the building. Do I feel like I have to impress him as much as the manager? Yeah! Exactly that!

'He's done a lot of things in the game and achieved so much. If he is signing here, on the back of that, and he is working hard every day, looking to set the standards, what excuse have we got not to follow? He has raised the level for everyone.'