04 questions for… Granit Xhaka.
Granit, what came to mind when it was clear we'd play Arsenal in a friendly?
Xhaka: Of course, it is special to go back to where I played for seven years. I had a brilliant time at Arsenal and I'm still in daily contact with lot of players and the staff. From the team that's Thomas Partey, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Gabriel Jesus above all. Over recent few weeks I've not really been able to talk to them about the game but I have in the past few days. I'm really looking forward to seeing them all again."
Several hundred fans will follow you to London. What can they and you as a team expect at the Emirates Stadium?
Xhaka: It's a special stadium with a special feeling and typical English atmosphere. It gets extremely loud when the home team makes good moves. The Arsenal fans are definitely looking forward to a match at the highest level as are our fans. From a football perspective we’ll face a very strong opponent and that's a huge challenge for us – but also for Arsenal of course.
Is it special motivation for you to return to the Emirates having won two trophies?
Xhaka: The English see Leverkusen with different eyes after last season and the perception is completely different. Specifically for the friendly, the two trophies last season obviously don't bring as anything. In this part of the preseason it's primarily about all players staying fit, us going to the limit in every friendly and getting into the rhythm of matches at the highest level.
Two top coaches of a younger generation face each other in Mikel Arteta and Xabi Alonso. You've played for both of them. What makes them stand out?
Xhaka: The connection between them is remarkable for professional football: They grew up together in the same city (San Sebastian, ed.). They have their own ways and their own characters but fundamentally follow the same approach to the game. They want to play football and exert pressure on the opposition both on and off the ball. I'm sure both of them will have a great future as coaches.
Midfielder Ruby Grant is leaving Bayer 04 Leverkusen and joining Portuguese runners-up Sporting CP a year before her contract expires. The 24-year-old has been at the Werkself since January 2025.
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Bayer 04 have loaned Brazilian full-back Arthur to Bundesliga side Werder Bremen for one year. Arthur Augusto de Matos Soares – the full name of the right-back – has a contract with Leverkusen until 30 June 2031. At Werder, the 23-year-old is expected to make an impact and help the long-established club further consolidate their position in the Bundesliga.
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Bayer 04 have loaned defender Jeanuel Belocian to Spanish top-flight side Racing Santander. The 21-year-old defender joins the team currently ninth in La Liga until the end of the current 2026/27 season. Belocian’s contract remains valid until 30 June 2029. Last season, the 1.86-metre-tall U21 international was loaned to VfL Wolfsburg for six months.
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He knows the dressing room, the pitch and the club. But, above all, he knows the feeling of playing for the Werkself at the BayArena: Moussa Diaby is back in Leverkusen after three years. The lightning-fast winger has signed a contract with Bayer 04 until 2031 and he will once again wear the number 19 jersey. The left-footed player previously played for the club from 2019 to 2023, having arrived in the Rhineland from his native France as a promising young talent and eventually leaving the club – having established himself as one of the Bundesliga’s best attackers – to join Aston Villa in the Premier League. Now he has returned to Bayer 04 from Al-Ittihad FC in Saudi Arabia.
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