GRANIT XHAKA has laid bare his gruelling childhood story from growing up in a working class family.
The ex-Arsenal midfielder was born in Basel, Switzerland, to Albanian parents who migrated from Besiane, Kosovo, two years before Xhaka was born.
Speaking to Australian media StanSport with tears welling in his eyes, Xhaka said: “We never forget where we come from.
“My parents were working during the day, extra work just to get us what we wanted.
“We had days we were 18 hours alone at home. My little one (four) and my bigger one (six) … I can’t see my kids staying 18 hours alone today. But we had it with my brother.
“My mother was starting work at 4am in the morning until 3pm. She did our food for lunch, came home at 3pm and did another food for dinner, she went to work. My dad was the same.”
Xhaka has been appointed captain at Arsenal, the Switzerland national team, Bayer Leverkusen and now at Sunderland.
The 33-year-old attributes his leadership qualities to his resilient upbringing.
He said: “My brother is one year older than me, he was five, I was four. But the key to the house, I had it.
“The leadership I had when I was four years old … I already had the responsibility of all the keys.”
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Even rival fans have expressed their admiration for his life experiences.
One wrote on X: “Respect from a Newcastle fan, I relate to this and so do so many, you never forget your roots as he says.”
Another said: “It’s ultimately why he wanted a new challenge, not with just the footballing side of Sunderland, but the working class city and people.”
It is fair to say Xhaka has succeeded in life, having made over 200 appearances for Arsenal and amassing more than 100 caps for Switzerland.
He has represented his country at three World Cups and three European Championships since 2014.
Xhaka added: “If you believe in something and work hard, I think you can get it.”
