“Yakin is the boss, but…”: Ex-Nati captain Alain Geiger defends Xhaka

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Sometimes trainers withdraw completely after their dismissal, they no longer want to have anything to do with the case, they go into hiding and turn off their mobile phones. But football often works as an addictive drug. Only a few escape it. Neither does Alain Geiger (62).

Just over two months have passed since his departure from Servette, but the Valais resident is already feeling hot again. “I am ready for a new mission,” says the man who spent five years on the sidelines at Servette, half an eternity in football. Geiger has not yet fully processed his deportation. Because he would have liked to reap the fruits of his good work and qualify for the Champions League.

Geiger defends Xhaka

The involuntary free time is, how could it be otherwise, filled with football. On Saturday, Geiger watched Nati’s match against Kosovo. And I noticed that after the equalizer at the last minute, Granit Xhaka strongly criticized the training intensity to make it 2-2. For Geiger, the long-time captain of the national team, the 112-time national player and the 1994 World Cup participant, these statements are not a problem. ‘I see it positively. It’s a wake-up call for everyone. Granit is a personality, his career speaks for itself, he has the right to do that.”

Naturally, the training with the national team is less intensive than with the club. But anyone who loses 6-1 to Portugal at the World Cup and concedes a goal in the last second against both Romania (2-2) and Kosovo must fundamentally question themselves. As a coach he never had a problem when a player made critical comments. Also publicly. That just emphasized his personality. Geiger, who was also a stubborn character as a player, says: “I worked with Gaël Clichy at Servette. He trained under Pep Guardiola. He was a very demanding player and demanded a lot. But I always listened to him when he had something to say.”

Murat Yakin should treat Granit Xhaka the same way. “In Switzerland there is still too much emphasis on hierarchies. Of course Murat Yakin is the boss as coach. But he should open the door for a player like Granit Xhaka. Communicate with him openly.”

Xhaka played a key role at Arsenal under Mikel Arteta. And now at Leverkusen under Xabi Alonso. They are demanding trainers, says Geiger. Xhaka’s expectations of Yakin are correspondingly high.

Can the national coach make this happen? Or is the next fight coming soon?

Source : Blick