Arsenal: Ruthlessness requires Laurent Koscielny step aside

Arsenal had a lot go right against CSKA Moscow, which made the things that went wrong all the more obvious. Laurent Koscielny was one of the latter.

For the first time in my Arsenal viewing career, there was a precise moment where I watched Laurent Koscielny make a mistake and thought to myself “Calum Chambers wouldn’t have let that happen.”

It came later in the game when Musa was driving at Koscielny and he literally walked right around him. No fancy footwork or anything. Granted, Koscielny had back-up, so it wasn’t detrimental, but what if he hadn’t?

I love Koscielny and am so incredibly grateful to have him at this club. He may not be a clearly outspoken leader, but his solidity in defense has been a blessing for half a decade. No doubt he has a long line of credit with the one man that matters as well.

But based on far more than this performance, I can safely say that I now have more faith in Chambers’ defensive abilities in any given match than I do Koscielny’s. I’m excited by that prospect, because we do have options that need to be utilized. I’m also a bit down because of it. Koscielny still gives his all and you can’t find any fault in him for that.

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Here’s the deal though – Koscielny was rested for three weeks on the back of a season that has been pretty poor. His injuries haven’t improved and his age is clearly getting the better of him. Yet against CSKA Moscow, he was the perpetrator of the majority of the defensive errors.

He has to be frustrated and disappointed with himself. He’s a competitor and demands more from himself. But if his body isn’t there to allow him to revamp his play, there’s nothing that can be done.

Meanwhile, you have a 23-year-old, able-bodied, starved young defender in Calum Chambers who takes every opportunity he has and shakes it into submission. He has aspirations to be as great as Koscielny has been and, at this point in Chambers’ career, he can even aim for more. Especially if he gets the chance he deserves to anchor this back line in the near future.

This is part of football. Koscielny hasn’t been cutting it, his trajectory is pushing downward. Chambers has been improving match by match. He has nabbed the third centerback slot, but should now be considered on a level playing field with Koscielny.

Next: 5 Things Learned Against CSKA Moscow

And, given that Koscielny is riding another poor stretch, it’s time to step aside and let Chambers have his go. Which, actually, should become a regular thing in the Premier League.

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