XHAKA TO RETURN TO ARSENAL XI

Switzerland international skipper Granit Xhaka is in line to return to the Arsenal starting XI ahead of the Premier League outing with Crystal Palace on Thursday. The Gunners will play hosts to Crystal Palace in a London Derby clash and Switzerland midfielder Xhaka is expected to be named in the Arsenal starting line-up after dropping out for the FA Cup third round tie with Newcastle United at the weekend.Xhaka dropped out of the Arsenal line-up for the FA Cup encounter as manager Mikel Arteta made several changes to his XI from the previous game, a 4-0 away win over struggling West Brom.


Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta had to call on Switzerland midfielder Xhaka off the bench as his team found it hard to break down a stubborn Newcastle United team. His introduction in the second half of regulation opened up the game as Arsenal went on to score two goals in extra time to win the FA Cup tie 2-0 and also seal a place in the fourth round.

The fourth and fifth round draws would take place on Monday night and Arsenal are one of the teams in the draw.
For the Newcastle United game, substitute Emile Smith-Rowe and club skipper Pierre-EmerickAubameyang were the scorers for the holders of the competition. Switzerland national team player Xhaka produced the killer pass for Scottish international Kieran Tierney to lay the ball on a plate for Aubameyang to score. The two goals came in the second half of extra time. Extra time was required to separate Arsenal from the Magpies after the two teams played out a goalless draw. The Gunners have now won four games in a row in all competitions ahead of the Palace game later this week. Three of the four straight Arsenal victories have come in the league.