Francis Coquelin analysis: Surprise package provides balance that eluded Arsenal

Arsene Wenger may have found answer to his midfield problems

It did not sound especially convincing when, last week, Arsène Wenger described Francis Coquelin as “an internal solution” to Arsenal’s lack of midfield steel.

What Arsenal fans have wanted, for some time, is an expensive upgrade, a William Carvalho or Morgan Schneiderlin, an imposing protector in front of the defence, a player they have missed for years.

But on Sunday afternoon in Manchester, his team, suddenly, found a way to win away against the best, beating City 2-0. And the scurrying, disruptive heart of it all, the internal solution, was Coquelin.

Santi Cazorla might have been the man of the match, but Arsenal have always had talented creative players. Coquelin’s display, in front of the defence in a 4-1-4-1 system, was unlike anything they have had in that role for some time.

That position has been shared, so far this season, by two players with far more experience than Coquelin. Mikel Arteta, at 32, is not as mobile as he once was. He has not played since late November and will not feature again until mid-April after ankle surgery last week. Mathieu Flamini, who is 30, has been on the bench for the past few weeks, Wenger seemingly having decided that his fellow Frenchman does not have the positional discipline or control to perform that role. Jack Wilshere plays there for England if not Arsenal but he is out injured.

Manchester City’s David Silva is tackled by Francis Coquelin of Arsenal (Getty)

Coquelin is just 23 and six weeks ago he was playing in the Championship for a struggling Charlton Athletic side, yet his displays since returning to Arsenal have provided a stability which those two senior players could not.

After coming on in the Boxing Day defeat of Queen’s Park Rangers, Coquelin has now started Arsenal’s last five games, growing in stature each time. After Arsenal beat Stoke City 3-0 on 11 January, their second-best performance of the season, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain hailed Coquelin’s form as “brilliant”, praising his work in providing “the platform to win the ball back, to give us more space to be creative”.

Wenger has used 4-4-1-1, 4-2-3-1 and 4-1-4-1 systems this season, and it is the third one which seems to give the team the best balance. It keeps Cazorla in the middle, the brain of this team, while allowing Alexis Sanchez to push forward from the left. But it needs energy and intelligence at its base, and Coquelin has been able to provide that.

Aaron Ramsey, back after almost six weeks out, played just ahead of Coquelin on Sunday and he praised his team-mate’s growing intelligence afterwards. “He’s at that age now where he understands the game a lot more and he has done really well in the last few weeks,” he said. “He wins it back, keeps it simple and keeps things ticking over. Hopefully he can build on his performances and he has got every chance of turning into a top defensive midfielder.”

Whether this is just a brief good run or the start of something permanent will become clear, but it has certainly been a surprise. Coquelin spent last season struggling to get into the Freiburg team, having been involved, on and off, for Arsenal the previous two seasons and at Lorient in 2010-11. He started one game this season – at left-back in the League Cup – before heading to Charlton.

When Coquelin returned, Wenger admitted that he did not know where his future lay. “He will make a career and hopefully he will make it here,” Wenger said. “I want to give him credit because he kept his work rate and focus in training at a very high level when he didn’t play.”

This hard work is now being rewarded. Coquelin has six months left on his Arsenal deal but a new contract is being mooted. “It is funny how quickly things can change in football,” said Ramsey. “One week he was on loan at Charlton, now he is back in the team every week.”