Xhaka will be ‘great for Arsenal’ – Christensen

The Denmark international defender has talked up his former team-mate and has compared him in style to Thorgan Hazard, younger brother of the Blues’ Eden

On-loan Borussia Monchengladbach man Andreas Christensen has given former team-mate Granit Xhaka a glowing endorsement as the Arsenal midfielder prepares to face Chelsea in the London derby on Saturday.The pair were team-mates at Gladbach last season, with Christensen playing alongside Xhaka after arriving at the club on a two-year loan deal from the Blues.The Denmark international will be supporting Chelsea as they try to put their defeat to Liverpool behind them at the Emirates Stadium, but believes that Xhaka will prove to be a brilliant signing for Arsenal.“I think he will be great for Arsenal,” Christensen told Goal. “He has got a big personality, he is great in the dressing room and he is a really confident guy. He plays with a lot of emotion, I think if he can adapt to the English culture, he will be great.“As a person he can be determined, focused and funny, but he is fun and a nice lad so he is kind of the same as he is on the pitch. He has got a lot of emotions [when he plays] and he just wants to win.“He is like that outside the pitch as well, he is a good person to have around, he will be good in the Arsenal dressing room. I will text him before the game comes around”¦ It is not that far away!”The duo played key roles in Gladbach qualifying for the Champions League by finishing fourth in the Bundesliga last term, with Christensen beating the Arsenal ace to the club’s Player of the Season gong.Christensen currently plays alongside Thorgan Hazard, younger brother to Chelsea star Eden, and believes both players share similar skill sets.“They are quite similar personality wise,” he added. “They are good people as well. I knew Thorgan from the Chelsea youth academy before I came here. So he is a great person as well, he is good fun, both of them speak with a lot of emotion and character.“They have got a lot of skills, they are quick and you always have to be on your toes to stop them, they do the same things in training, very similar, and have great physique as well.”