No one sums up how the mood has changed at Arsenal more than Granit Xhaka.
Previously during his time at Arsenal, the midfielder, sometimes through no fault of his own, has been a lightning rod for criticism.
Now, though, Xhaka is flourishing and his goal and assist during the Gunners’ 4-2 win over Leicester City on Saturday reinforced the view that he is playing arguably his best football since he came to north London.
The key to it all is freedom, both on and off the pitch.
On the pitch, that liberation is manifesting itself in a new role for Xhaka. Previously he has usually been asked to play deep, often sitting alongside another central midfielder in front of the defence.
Last season that began to change with the Switzerland international operating as one of two ‘No8s’ ahead of Thomas Partey.
Even then, though, Xhaka did not have the licence he has now to get forward and it was telling that in the first-half on Saturday he had three touches in the opposition box – equalling the entire Leicester team.
The arrival of Oleksandr Zinchenko has shifted Xhaka’s role. The Ukraine international plays at left-back, but in possession under Mikel Arteta he has pushed high and tucked in to join the midfield with fellow full-back Ben White.
It means at times in possession Arsenal are almost playing a 2-3-5, with Xhaka and Martin Odegaard pushed high up the pitch to join the forward line.
“I spoke with the coach before the season and he told me that I have more freedom than last season,” Xhaka said.
“I can move, not wherever I want because I have to have a lot of discipline to move for Alex [Zinchenko] and [Gabriel] Martinelli as well.
“I’ve got more freedom to go up and down. I know I can do that. I have a lot of freedom from the coach, from my teammates.
“At the moment I’m happy with how everything is going. Let’s continue to work like this and hopefully at the end of the season we can be more than happy.
“It’s always good when you score and it’s always good when you can help the team - not only me, but all the players did a great job today. I’m more than happy to help, of course.”
The freedom Xhaka is enjoying extends off the pitch too, where he has spoken out numerous times in the past 12 months or so on the social media abuse he has suffered.
For so long, the midfielder had suffered in silence but by opening up to the wider public he has changed the perception around him.
Now those who may have abused Xhaka in the past will think twice and the 29-year-old has become a key figure in football’s fight against social media hate.
He looks liberated for speaking out, perhaps taken aback by the largely positive feedback he has received for doing so, and the positivity around Xhaka is indicative of the overall mood at Arsenal right now.
For the past few years, there has been an undercurrent of discontent and sense the connection between supporters and the club was fractured.
Slowly but surely, that is changing under Arteta and Xhaka’s rebirth is proof of that.
