Hector Bellerin: Granit Xhaka 'Made a Mistake,' Former Captain 'One of Us'

Arsenal's Hector Bellerin has said Granit Xhaka made a "mistake" in his reaction to being substituted in the recent draw with Crystal Palace but has encouraged those associated with the club to rally around the player. 

Xhaka was jeered by sections of the Emirates Stadium crowd when he was brought off in the 2-2 draw and the Switzerland international reacted angrily, putting his hand to his ears and seemingly swearing at the crowd.

The midfielder has not played since, and it was confirmed on Tuesday he had been stripped of the club captaincy. Speaking about the matter, Bellerin said it's time to move on, per Jake Polden of the Daily Mirror:

"Sometimes it's hard to deal with feelings. He made a mistake, but as a dressing room we have to be together.

"These things happen and that's it. We back him. He is playing his part now. We respect the players, we respect the decision of the coach and the club. For us it's just to give him our love and care. He's one of us so we're just helping him get through it."

Xhaka was only confirmed as the Arsenal captain earlier in the campaign, although he has since been replaced by star striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Here is a reminder of the controversial moment Xhaka was taken out of the game against Crystal Palace:

The day after the game, Bellerin posted the following message on his Twitter account calling for unity:

In his own statement, Xhaka said he and his family have been subject to abuse during his time as an Arsenal player. The Swiss said he reached "boiling point" when he was jeered by some against Palace but said "I love this club and always give 100 per cent on and off the pitch."

For many, the decision to appoint Xhaka as captain was a strange one to begin with. While he has never struck as a natural leader, Arsenal also have depth in the midfield positions, meaning he wasn't always guaranteed a regular in the side.

Arsenal writer Layth Yousif thinks the right decision has been made to take the armband off the 27-year-old:

At this stage, it will be intriguing to see how Arsenal go about integrating Xhaka back into the first-team setup. Nick Ames of the Guardian said he would be surprised to see the player turn out for the club again:

Xhaka has not been included in the squad for Wednesday's UEFA Europa League clash against Vitoria Guimaraes, while Arsenal will next be in action in the Premier League in a key showdown with Leicester City on Saturday evening.

Per Rich Jones of the Daily Mirror, Gunners manager Unai Emery refused to rule out the prospect of selling Xhaka in January.