Francis Coquelin may now be the lynchpin of Arsenal brilliant recent run, but it seems strange to think that just a few months ago he was playing in the Championship with Carlton, therefore he is the only Gunner with first-hand experience against Reading this season.
Le Coq says that the Royals are not going to be an easy touch at Wembley tomorrow. “You know the FA Cup, you don’t know what to expect – any team is ready for it and it is always a tough game at any stage,” he told Arsenal.com.
“A semi-final at Wembley will be even tougher. We need to be ready and start on the front foot. Hopefully we can do that and win the game.
“I remember a tough game [against them for Charlton]. We won 1-0, but to be honest I don’t think we really deserved it.
“They put a lot of pressure on us, they have Pogrebnyak up front who is a big threat, and on the wings they have great players as well. We know it will be a tough game, it is a semi-final and the league you play in doesn’t matter.
“Whether you are in the Championship or the Premier League, in a game like this the team who puts the most pressure on and creates the most chances will win. If everyone is focused, we know we can get a good result.”
It would seem that Reading have dropped down the table since then and may not be quite so formidable, but I would just like to say one thing to Francis – Charlton may have had a hard game against Reading, but we are not Charlton. We are ARSENAL!