Arsenal: Wilfred Ndidi transfer like a Francis Coquelin do-over

Arsenal sold Francis Coquelin after he stalled out, but they may be looking for a straight do-over with Leicester City midfielder Wilfred Ndidi.

Arsenal’s midfield is in a state of complete chaos. Nobody knows what it will look like going into next season but just about everyone agrees that one thing is desperately needed – a defensive midfielder that specializes in winning the ball.

Even I, as I make googly eyes every time Granit Xhaka completes a pass, can admit that we really do need a ball-winner. But that ball-winner needs to do more than just win the ball, he needs to understand how to turn play and go in the opposite direction.

Which is something Francis Coquelin never learned to do, despite years of investment into his continued development.

Max Meyer is my front runner, and not just because he’s free. He’s my front runner to fill a role, despite the fact that he isn’t as good as a ball-winner than some others, but it’s what he brings go forward that counts.

That said, you can invest in building midfield options. I do miss the security that Coquelin brought, when you could turn to him to guard a late lead. That was something special and reassuring that we don’t have anymore.

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That’s where Wilfred Ndidi comes into it. Just 21 years old, Ndidi knows how to win the ball. 4.2 tackles won this year. That’s damn good, but it’s a specialty thing. He doesn’t do much else, despite his solid three assists.

But he’s only 21. He would be like having another go at Coquelin. When you sign someone at 21 who can play a bit-part role now like what Coquelin did, but also have the upside to develop into something more, then there really isn’t a drawback.

I’ve talked a lot about pushing reset on a lot of former Arsenal staples with new signings. I consider Meyer like reset on Jack Wilshere. Ndidi is a reset on Coquelin, and one with even more upside.

The midfield needs options. I’m not sold on the need to have a starting ball-winner who does nothing but win the ball back, but having that option is key. Because right now, the only option is either box-to-box or whatever Mohamed Elneny does.

I want that hype again, like when Coquelin first broke through (post-Charlton, that is). That hype when we realized we finally had a ball-winner. Even if I don’t want to build a midfield around a ball-winner, I certainly like knowing that we have the option.

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If that option has the upside of Ndidi then hey, all the better.

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