Jack Wilshere Would be Perfect Partner for Francis Coquelin in the Long Run for Arsenal

By Josh Sippie | May 1, 2015

23-year old Francis Coquelin has become the best defensive midfielder in the entire Premier League. His stats are absolutely phenomenal. He’s averaging just under 4 interceptions a game, 4 tackles a game and 4 clearances a game, all of which are superior numbers to Nemanja Matic (via WhoScored.com).

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Barring any bizarre changes in form, Francis Coquelin should be the holding midfielder for the long run. But based on Arsenal’s 4-2-3-1 formation, we’re going to need another holding midfielder.

We’ve been linked to William Carvalho and Morgan Schneiderlin, both of whom would cost a pretty penny out of Arsenal’s 50 million pound budget. But why do we need to sign someone when the solution is already in our squad?

Jack Wilshere needs only to remain healthy to really start putting his career together. Also 23-years old, Wilshere has plenty of time to grow into the potential that’s been heaped on him. We saw what he’s capable of during the beginning half of the season, particularly in the match against Manchester City.

Jack Wilshere has been the holding midfielder for England for the last couple years but Arsene Wenger has come out and refused him the chance of playing a similar role for Arsenal. But with Wilshere returning to the squad, where else would he feasibly play, and why would we want him to be moved when he’s always in his best form at that role or a similar role?

Francis Coquelin has always had the support of Jack Wilshere, as the young Englishman said of his French counterpart, “I’ve played with Francis since I was 15 or 16 so we know each other really well. He didn’t get a look in before that. But I always knew that once he got his chance he would deliver, and he gets better and better as each game goes on,” he told Arsenal Player as reported by Inside Futbol.

Francis Coquelin plays with an unbridled ferocity that Jack Wlshere can match. Remember that time Jack Wilshere headbutted Marouane Fellaini? Yeah, me too. That’s pretty ferocious. The two’s combined intensity could be an epic pairing for another decade. Wilshere also has the ability to track forward and start attacks, similar to what Santi Cazorla is doing now, but with added off the ball intensity and defensive capabilities.

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I truly hope that Arsenal do not buy Morgan Schniederlin or William Carvalho. If we’re keeping Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini, than we have all the back ups we need to cover for Jack Wilshere’s potential injuries. Plus we’ll still have Santi Cazorla who can rotate about and play literally any position in front of the back line.

Jack Wilshere knows it won’t be easy getting back into the starting squad for Arsenal. They have a winning formula in their squad as is and there really is no reason to change up much. But Jack Wilshere has to be given the chance to get back into the squad and when he does, it should be alongside Francis Coquelin, where I have the sneaking suspicion he’ll be for quite some time.

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