Copyright mirror
Granit Xhaka is the 'signing of the season' according to Jamie Carragher . The Sunderland midfielder sealed a return to the Premier League by joining the Black Cats in a £17.3million deal from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer. The 33-year-old signed a three-year deal at the Stadium of Light , two years on from leaving Arsenal and the top-flight for the Bundesliga. Shortly after joining Regis Le Bris' team, Xhaka was named captain of the side and the former Emirates favourite has quickly established himself as a key player for Sunderland as they acclimatise to life back in the Premier League. The play-off winners are in fourth place in the top-flight after continuing their fine start to the season with a draw against Everton and Xhaka has not missed a single minute across Sunderland's first 10 Premier League matches. The Swiss star's goal earned a point against the Toffees, earning him further praise from Carragher. "He must be the signing of the season," Carragher said on Sky Sports . "When you think of someone who’s influential on their team, I’ve been calling Manchester City the Erling Haaland team, but is there anyone right now in the Premier League having a bigger influence on their club than Granit Xhaka? "There can’t be. An absolutely brilliant signing so far." "I thought Granit Xhaka was absolutely fantastic. Not just the goal. Head and shoulders above everyone else on that pitch tonight," Carragher added. "When you think of the results this weekend, Burnley , who have come up, lost. Leeds, lost. It's another point. You just keep ticking along. Because there will come a stage this season where Sunderland go a few games without picking points up. A return to the Premier League wasn't what Xhaka planned on after making his exit from Arsenal. The veteran has been impressed by his club and wants to help them achieve success. "I didn't expect to come back to the Premier League after going to Germany, but in football you never know where you land," he said. "After two years in Germany, where I had a lot of good things with titles and I got a lot of confidence with a coach like Xabi Alonso, who was a similar player to me in the No 6 position, he gave me a lot of advice. "In the end, to be back it makes me happy. I knew the project from the club and to bring the experience as well as quality, and to show the guys day-by-day working. "I hope I can help them. We have one objective: to give everything and see where we land." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
