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Make No Mistake, Francis Coquelin Improves this Arsenal Defense
It feels as if it has been since the days of The Invincibles since Arsenal fans have been able to characterize their team’s defense as world class. However recent results and statistics have shown that the defense is trending in the right direction.
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Many fans will point to the improvements of principle defenders Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertersacker. Others will point to the addition of star keeper Petr Cech as the chief reason behind the Gunners defensive surge. The defensive midfield player that seems to be making the biggest contribution also happens to be one of the most underrated players on the entire squad.
Francis Coquelin is no stranger to being overlooked and under appreciated. He spent the entire year on loan to Lorient in the 2010-2011 season. In 2013, he was away on a season loan to German club SC Freiburg, before quickly being sent on a month loan in November 2014 to lower league side Charlton Athletic. In fact, it wasn’t until Arsenal stud midfielder Aaron Ramsey went down with a hamstring injury (surprise, surprise) last season that Coquelin got a real opportunity to start with the first XI.
Unlike many defenders around his height, Coquelin plays a very aggressive style of football. He always commits (sometimes a little too much) to a challenge if necessary. There is no doubt that it has paid dividends. Since starting against West Ham United on 28 December 2014, he has led the league in defensive interceptions and one-on-one duels, while placing second in tackles made, trailing Manchester City’s Pablo Zabaleta by only a slim margin.
Coquelin’s efforts are even noticed by his manager, Arsene Wenger, who in a press conference back in August announced “Defensively, Coquelin is doing a great job. Since January, we have conceded fewer goals than anybody else.”
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So why has he been so unnoticed for such a large duration of time? Well, unlike his defensive peers Mertersacker and Koscielny, Coquelin is yet to score a goal for the Gooners. While there is no question that defenders should not be rated based on the amount of goals they score, everyone knows that goals are the easiest way for a player to get noticed. Even Arsenal left back Nacho Monreal has scored 2 goals during his tenure at Arsenal. One of them happened to be a colossal goal against Manchester United last season at the FA Cup.
Make no mistake, Coquelin is currently one of the best in the business at what he does. His dominant presence was sorely missed in Arsenal’s humbling defeat to Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday. But until he finds the back of the net for the Gooners, it is likely that he will remain largely unnoticed by many followers. Why? Because that’s the game of football. And the game of football relies on goals.
Next: Pairing Arteta and Cazorla set Arsenal back a decade