Borussia Monchengladbach's sporting director Max Eberl has revealed that Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka came close to joining bitter rivals Stoke City - a full two years before he moved to the Emirates Stadium.
Former Potters manager Mark Hughes endured a nightmare run in the transfer market towards the back end of his Stoke tenure, with a number of high profile signings flopping upon their arrival at the-then Britannia Stadium.
But that could have panned out differently had Xhaka made the move to Stoke, after what had been a disappointing beginning to his Bundesliga career at Gladbach.