Arsenal: Laurent Koscielny revelation isn’t revelatory at all

Arsenal will be parting ways with Laurent Koscielny… but not until 2020, when his contract runs out. Until then, he’s all ours.

Arsenal have been anchored by the stoic Laurent Koscielny for the better part of the last five years. Throughout the changing partners, the Thomas Vermaelen’s and the Per Mertesacker’s, the Squillacci’s and the Djourou’s, he has been the one that inspires the most hope.

This past year was a bit of a let down, but Koscielny is a consummate professional who won’t be kept down. His intelligence and athleticism is second to none and for awhile there, he was in the conversation as one of the best defenders in the Premier League.

All this to say that he will be leaving the club when his contract runs up in 2020. He made this announcement days ago, and I haven’t bothered to write about it since because, honestly, it’s not that big of a deal. That’s still two years away.

It’s probably for the best to get this out of the way, though. Koscielny’s ongoing viability was put up for question following a dismal year last year, but an injury prevented the club from having to make any decisions regarding his immediate future.

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Missing the World Cup, the end of last year and at least half of this coming season with an Achilles injury, Koscielny will return with about a year left to give, and I’d actually be pretty surprised if he didn’t make a real go at it.

The comparisons to Per Mertesacker are there for the making, but I think that it will be a bit more Vincent Kompany than that. He is a proud player, and he is a Gunner, so when that opportunity comes knocking for him to recapture the last of his days at the Emirates, you can bet he is going to take it.

Plus, unlike Mertesacker, he is still an athletic man that can keep pace with the toils of the Premier League.

Assuming that doesn’t change, we have a bit of a hidden boon coming our way when he does get healthy. He knows how ineffective he was last year and he knows how the club has been forced to move on without him. He will be up against the grain to get back into the mix and, again, he knows all of this.

So when his times comes, you can bet that he will be ready for it.

His presence is still going to be highly-valued, and I do hope the club doesn’t move to sell him before that contract runs out. I can’t help but feel that some people have earned a bit more than that.