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Arsenal: Laurent Koscielny gives peek behind competitive curtain
Laurent Koscielny has revealed how he and the Arsenal squad would be bitterly disappointed if they missed out on Champions League football, giving us a peek behind the curtain into their competitive nature.
The critique that has often engulfed the Arsenal squad has centred on their mentality to win. More than merely wanting to win, they have, per the doubters, failed to perform when the pressure is on, crumbling at crucial times, lacking the desperation that comes with a truly competitive team.
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However, whether it be the Gunners or another side, that critique has never quite resonated with me. While there is something to be said for lacking resilience and fortitude at crucial moments, to suggest that professional footballers lack a competitive edge is a little ridiculous considering the job that they do.
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And now Laurent Koscielny is challenging that notion. When asked how he and his teammates would feel if they did indeed miss out on Champions League football at the end of the season as is possible given their current Premier League predicament, Koscielny revealed that it would be ‘extremely disappointing’, claiming that they are wanting to fight for the top four and the title each and every season:
"“We perform every weekend to be in the top four and to fight for the title over the season. To not be in the Champions League next season would be a very disappointing situation for us but we will fight until the end to have as much of a chance to be there next season. I think every game is important but now we are nearly at the end of the season, we have two games and we have to win them both so it starts with Sunderland.”"
Such comments utterly challenge the narrative that most would spout over this Arsenal squad. They are meant to be indifferent to their results; unmoved by humiliating losses, more considered with their Instagram selfies on the plane than their performances on the pitch.
There are, undoubtedly, major mental shortcomings within this squad. They are naive and innocent in their defending, are repeatedly caught out soon after conceding and crumble at crucial moments in games, often losing in a few minutes of madness, rather than digging in and grinding out the result.
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However, suggesting that they do not want to win is simply not true. They are professional footballers for Pete’s sake!! They want to win and they want to win well, and Koscielny’s comments only enforce that point.