Coquelin could be a new Vieira or Arsenal’s own Matic by Sam P
If Francis Coquelin can continue in the way he has been doing recently for Arsenal, it will be a truly remarkable turnaround for the young Frenchman. And not only could it rescue an Arsenal career that was looking on very thin ice, it could also solve a problem that many say we have had since Patrick Vieira left in 2005.
I know I might be getting a bit ahead of myself here, but Coquelin has just passed a massive test with his disciplined and determined performance at Man City. And that was just the latest in a string of strong performances since Arsene Wenger recalled him from a loan spell at Charlton due to our injury crisis in central midfield.
Mathieu Flamini could well be worried about when he will next get a game, as Coquelin has really grabbed his chance by the short and curlies. He spoke recently about how his various loan moves have helped and it seems to me that they have helped his state of mind as much as his match sharpness.
You get the impression that Coquelin has realised how close he was to failing at Arsenal and has become like a new player, with the aggression and drive to match his technical ability. You might think it a bit too soon to compare him with Chelsea’s Matic, and it is really. But don’t forget that Matic failed at Chelsea and they had to buy him back for big money when he clicked.
And take a quick look at the stats comparison between Coquelin and Matic in this Metro report that shows the young Gunner amazingly winning in all sorts of areas like tackling, clearances, blocks and defending in general.
Time will tell, Gooners, but do you think Coquelin could really become our Matic or even better, our new Vieira?