Sunderland have confirmed their new club captain ahead of the new campaign

Sunderland have confirmed that Granit Xhaka will be the club’s captain this season.

Xhaka has previously held the role at both Borussia Mönchengladbach and Arsenal, while he has captained Switzerland since 2020. The 32-year-old became Sunderland’s marquee summer signing when joining from Bayer Leverkusen earlier this summer, and had widely been expected to take on the role following his arrival.

Last season the captaincy responsibilities were split between Dan Neil as team captain and Luke O’Nien as club captain, with a leadership group appointed within the dressing room. That will happen again this year, but the club have confirmed that they will appoint the full leadership group after the summer transfer window had closed.

Head coach Régis Le Bris said he had been very impressed with Xhaka’s qualities since arriving, both and off the pitch, and stressed how important a role he will play this season.

“In the Premier League, it will be important to have consistency, maturity, and experience,” Le Bris said.

“Granit brings all these qualities. His behaviour so far has been very impressive, and on the field, you can see that his level is high. Others around him can feel this influence, and his leadership will support the team as we adapt to a different environment and face new challenges and opportunities. Granit’s role will also form part of a new leadership team, which will be finalised following the end of the summer transfer window.”

Granit Xhaka responds to Sunderland captaincy ‘honour’

Xhaka said he was ‘incredibly proud’ to be named captain ahead of the new season.

“It makes me incredibly proud to be captain of this Club and of this team,” he said.

“I hope to show my leadership on and off the pitch, helping my team-mates in the training ground and across the Club. To be part of Sunderland’s history, alongside some of the names who have worn the armband before, is an honour. People who know me know exactly what they’ll get – I’m someone who demands a lot. I’m a winner and I want to win – and I expect the same from my team-mates."

Granit Xhaka issues messages to Sunderland fans on the eve of the new season

“From the beginning, I had a really positive feeling, at the training ground,” Xhaka said.

“I can feel and see already how excited people are. I saw already when we played Real Betis how excited everyone is for the Premier League. I can guarantee that we will give everything on the pitch with the support of the fans. We need to connect with each other and help with each other.

“We need to show everything on the pitch. We are looking ready, we are working very hard day by day. We know exactly where we want to be. I’m so happy to be back in the Premier League but Saturday is a different thing, we know how excited people are and we need to take that in a positive way. We’re excited as well but we need to be calm and show ourselves on the pitch. To the fans, on Saturday we need your support. Whatever happens, let’s stick together. We will win games and for sure we will have bad games, but the most important thing is to stick together and we can achieve our goals.”

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