Despite reports that Xhaka had told the club he wanted to join Sunderland, ten Hag believes that the midfielder still has an important role to play at Leverkusen. He pointed out that the club has already lost several key players this summer, including Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, and Jonathan Tah.

"Granit is a leader, and he still has three years left on his contract here," ten Hag said, as quoted by BILD. "His agent can say whatever he wants, but we won't let any more important players go."

Ten Hag's comments suggest that Xhaka is unlikely to leave Leverkusen anytime soon, despite the reported agreement between the midfielder and Sunderland.