Sunderland captain Granit Xhaka surprisingly snubbed as Manchester United star lands Premier League award
The Sunderland star was a leading candidate to be named as Premier League Transfer of the Season.
Sunderland captain Granit Xhaka has surprisingly missed out on being named as the Premier League’s official Transfer of the Season.
The former Bayer Leverkusen midfielder was nominated alongside Leeds United striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Arsenal’s Premier League winner Viktor Gyokeres, Joao Pedro of Chelsea, Bournemouth defender Adrien Truffert and Manchester City duo Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo.
However, the award went to Manchester United goalkeeper Senne Lammens after he made a big impact during his first season at Old Trafford as the Belgium international kept eight clean sheets in 32 appearances to help the Red Devils land a return to the Champions League.
Many had suspected Xhaka would be one of the frontrunners to land the award after he played an integral role in ensuring Sunderland surpassed all expectations in the first season back in the Premier League and secured a place in next season’s Europa League. The Swiss international made 34 appearances in all competitions, scoring one goal and providing six assists during that time. However, the stats only tell half of the story of the seismic impact he has made on and off the pitch as Regis Le Bris’ men created history and ended any concerns about how he or his new side would fare on their return to the top flight of English football.
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Speaking to BBC Sport earlier this year, the Black Cats captain discussed his move to the Stadium of Light and admitted there were some that doubted he had made the right decision.
He said: “Even the people closest to me were saying: 'Why are you going back to the Premier League to join Sunderland?’ I came back because I love the challenge and I had the feeling I need a new challenge. After two years in Germany, where in the first year we won nearly everything, unbeaten in the Bundesliga, won the cup, lost the final of Europa League, which was very painful. I just had the feeling with the owner when I spoke with them - with the club, with the coach - this is the right club for me, because the people are very humble. It's a small city like where I grew up. I just wanted to come back in a reality which I believe is the right direction for myself, for my family. I'm just happy that everything at the moment is going how I wanted it to.”