The Black Cats return to European football after a 53-year absence, having secured seventh place in the Premier League following an impressive 2025/26 campaign.
While relishing the opportunity to lead Sunderland in Europe, the 33-year-old midfielder is determined to go all the way with Regis Le Bris’ side.
Xhaka has reached the Europa League final twice in his career, with Arsenal and Bayer Leverkusen, but suffered defeat on both occasions against Chelsea and Atalanta respectively.
The Switzerland international is now hoping to make it third time lucky, believing Sunderland are mentally and physically prepared to compete for the trophy.
“I have played in two Europa League finals and lost twice, so for me it is a big dream to get to another final,” Xhaka told the media.
“We are ready mentally and physically. If we have the right mentality and desire, we can make it a very special night.”
Le Bris and his players will need to be at their best to overcome an AZ Alkmaar side that has made an impressive start to the Eredivisie season, remaining unbeaten after six matches, with five wins and 17 goals scored.
However, Xhaka remains confident Sunderland can rise to the occasion, with the former Arsenal midfielder expecting the Stadium of Light to provide a special atmosphere for the club’s return to European football.
“We know how good AZ are, but we are playing at home,” he continued. “We want to bring joy to our fans.
“European football is different to the Premier League and it is challenging, but the mood is very positive.
“We need to separate the Premier League and Europa League and prepare in the right way.
“I want to see the stadium on fire and our players on fire.
“We know we wrote something historic last season and now we can start to feel the excitement. The stadium will be on fire tomorrow.
“We deserve to be where we are. There is nothing better than competing in European football.”
Meanwhile, manager Le Bris has taken plenty of positives from his team’s league defeat to Arsenal, insisting their performance demonstrated that the Black Cats have what it takes to compete with any team.
“The performance against Arsenal showed that we can compete. We have to keep moving forward,” the Frenchman said.
“Another competition, same standards, same identity. It is a game we want to win. We want to go strong in both competitions, which is important for our supporters and for the club.
“Playing in Europe is a great chance to get better at being flexible as a squad. The depth of the squad is getting better and we need more than 11 players to be competitive in all competitions.”
