Granit Xhaka says the priority for Arsenal is finishing in the top four of the Premier League, but winning the Europa League would be ‘nice as well’.

granit xhaka v leicester
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 22: Granit Xhaka of Arsenal shouts instructions during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Leicester City at Emirates Stadium on October 22, 2018, in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

Arsenal face Napoli on Thursday night in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final, but winning the competition isn’t the only way for them to qualify for the Champions League next season. The Gunners are also in contention for a top-four spot in the Premier League, and Granit Xhaka says that’s their primary target.

“I think we want to stay in the top four — we want to be back in the Champions League,” Xhaka said. “For me, the Premier League is first and after if you can go to the final and take the Europa League, of course, it is nice as well, but for us, it is the Premier League first.

“We are now in fourth place — two points over [Manchester] United, one game less than Chelsea and one point behind Tottenham — and they play against Manchester City this weekend. This can be a big weekend for us.”

It’s a bit surprising to hear a player say they’re prioritising a higher league finish over a trophy, but playing in the Champions League is clearly of the utmost importance to them nowadays.

Perhaps Xhaka also feels that the road to Europa League success is more unpredictable, with Arsenal likely to need wins over Napoli, Valencia and Chelsea to lift the trophy. With four teams fighting for the final pair of Premier League top four spots, there’s more room to make mistakes and hope others do too.

In the end, it only really matters what Unai Emery wants to prioritise, and who he picks for each match as a result. Whatever the players think, all they can do is keep trying to win the games in front of them.