Open late.
Granite Jaka has an unusual career. In his mid-30s, it was a career of not being the brightest player, hard work, minimal trophies, not many iconic matches. Just a solid football player, the leader of the Great Crisis. But as he turned 30, life became much more saturated. Championship runs, historic victories, even the fight for the top spot. And now, the next step beckons, one that will add new colors to his career.
Arsenal is still Jaka’s main club; he risked becoming a forgotten hero of the “dark era.”
The best examples are Memphis Depay, Pierre-Emerik Obameg, and Luke de Jong for Barcelona. They arrived at the worst time for the club, but kept the team afloat. Yes, they weren’t marked by a mountain of titles and quickly forgotten. But that’s part of that era.
With the Swiss, it’s a similar story. He joined Arsenal when it was Wenger’s project, the English league runners-up. But with a bit of a breath, problems began in the midfielder’s first year at the club. From then on, the main challenge was the fight for fifth place; the Gunners twice finished eighth, and Arsen Wenger left the team.
Jaka risked becoming the uncle-mentor who made dark times and scared youngsters. The prerequisites were sufficient: difficult nature, periodic conflicts, a history of losing the captain’s bandage (the footballer himself was very worried at the time). Mikel Arthet gradually transformed Arsenal and breathed new life into Havbek.
Perhaps they didn’t do it to the captain, but the leader’s status became undeniable, and the conflicts ceased. Jaka was among Arsenal’s leaders when the Londoners suddenly joined the championship race. Until the spring, the team was at the top of the table, but they lacked enough championship experience; they missed out on a City striker. At the same time, Jaka, who had only reached 30 in the fall, decided to change the situation.
He ventured to move to Bayer, only just recovering from the crisis.
To say goodbye to Arsenal, which had imposed the Battle of the City and was ready to continue the race, to move to Bayer—the team that had been there for the entire previous season, and Alonso had to elevate it from the starting lineup—is not just bold, it’s very bold. And somehow, it turned out that Jaka guessed right! Arsenal, of course, performed better than last season, but still left without trophies (except for one great catch). And Granite was part of the opening squad this season. Jaka, who had said goodbye to any hope of major titles at Arsenal, suddenly reunited Trebl during his first year at a new club. The young and impudent “Bayer” Alonso suddenly moved to Bayern and held his charge until he conceded the title. Moreover, at the same time, the “pharmacists” fought for the German Cup and the Europa League.
Along this path, the Leverkuzen players convinced everyone they’d hacked football. They scored in the final minutes, the dynamic players scored more and more often, until it began to seem like a mockery. The attacking powerhouse, of course, was pushed back, and he rarely contributed to the goals. And what difference does it make if you play regularly at the start? That year, Havbek didn’t get enough wins.
A little later, he won the German Super Cup.
Now he needs a kiva due to problems with another veteran.
Inter recently showed interest in Jaka. For the 32-year-old, this is another step forward. We’re talking about a team that recently won the league, and the following year, they fought for the title again with Napoli, and twice in the previous three seasons, they reached the Champions League final. Joining such a team is a new twist for a player’s rapidly developing career.Clearly, there are reservations. The Nerazzurri were a whole project under Indzagi, but now Simone has left, and the inexperienced Kiva is at the helm. Last season’s disappointment, a bruised preparation due to the club
World Cup
So, Inter’s prospects are rather vague. But Granit’s transfer is of great importance for Milan. There’s a serious risk of a breakup with Hakan Chalkhanoglu – the midfielder wants to return to his homeland and play for Galatasaray, and in this context, the conflict with Lautaro Martinez has turned sour. Kiva had to intervene, while the situation isn’t building confidence. At the same time, Nerazzurri prefer to stay within the framework of experienced leaders, so they’re looking for a comparable alternative for Chalkhanoglu. In this respect, Granit is great – he has a lot of experience, and he’s a player with a personality capable of maintaining the necessary atmosphere in the team.
This is perhaps the most important transfer of the Swiss’s career.
