A lot of rumors circulating about several Arsenal players leaving during this transfer window. One of them is, of course, Sanchez who is rumored to Manchester City, but other rumors is suggesting Coquelin might leave for Valencia. The fee is set to be about 10m £, which is extremely low taking the recent transfers into consideration. I will try to share some thoughts on the Coquelin deal.
Coquelin
Back in 2014/2015 Coquelin was called back from his loan spell. Due to injuries, Wenger, was forced to recall some of his players on loan. Coquelin was one of them. Nobody had expectations, and all of us just thought he would be another player sitting on the bench, but what happened in that season was remarkable.Not since Vieira had I seen a DM play like that. Take a look at this clip. It's pure beauty. The way he reads the play was outstanding. Sadly he doesn't play like that anymore.
Back then we would play with three players at the center of the midfield. Now, we play with two. This means that if Coquelin plays he is forced to go forward and create chances, dribble past a man etc. In other words, he is forced to do the stuff he just can't. When he had his best performances he played the defensive role in a three-man midfield. Constantly, he would tackle the ball and immediately play it to more creative players. It's like he now thinks he has to do more than the simple things he did. He thinks he has to score goals, make assists, etc, but the beauty of his play in 2014-2016 was the discipline and the understanding of when he played his best. He understood that by always back up the defense he was doing the exact job he could do, and was told to do. Now he is doing the job he can't do, but probably is told to do, by a manager that seems to have lost control, as well as the understanding of what his players are capable of.
Sum-up
I think that to sell Coquelin for 10m £ is as stupid as it can get. He is playing in a formation that doesn't fit him. He is playing a role he simply can't. He needs a three-man midfield to do what he does best. I think we will regret the sale of Coquelin.
Great post! Good player to bad that Wenger changed the formation as you say think would be good if we had this defensive position left to be honest. Our defense is shit nowdays. Last time I saw good defending in Arsenal was in May when Mertesacker played against Chelsea. He was outstanding.
I agree. We need this defensive position that always stays back, even when we need a goal.
Hi @arsenal49,
We will miss him, no doubt about that but I what feel is good for arsenal now is for us to get busy at the transfer window, buying needed players and not cheap players @adeuyi
Arsenal have had a few of these- mediocre players who came in and did a job at the time but weren't really top level. Johan Djourou is another who springs to mind who was excellent for a few months back around 2010/11 if I remember. Denilson and Alex Song too.
I don't think Denilson or Djourou ever played that well over a longer period of time. Alex Song did, and that's why he got sold to Barcelona.
I don't think you should or will sell him either. Squad players are important, and you need depth to compete for the title, so Coquelin is definitely more valuable than £10m in that sense. But then again it's Wenger who seemingly has lost the plot. If you guys lose Sanchez, Özil, Coquelin and more, then I wish you guys a lot of luck, since that season will probably be reminiscent of Moyes' first season for Manchester United.
I couldn't agree more. Latest rumors say we will buy Malcolm from Bordeaux and Evans, but if we still sell Sanchez, Özil and Coquelin, then we will still be fucked.
I will miss him......decent and effective player.....but he has not played much this season, so i can understand the decision
Selling le Coque is gonna b be really bad
to bad that we will beat you at emirates in second leg :P
Probably :p
Good game last night
Not the best CDM ever, but when it comes to defending, he is still way better than Xhaka.
It was great when Coquelin + Cazorla held the midfield with Ozil in front of them.
Yes. That's the combination that works. Just look at Modric, Kroos and Casemiro. It's the same constallation. A defensive one, a player that makes great passes, and a creative one. The miss of Cazorla has been bigger than we expected.
My favorite team after Barcelona is Arsenal playing a nice ball
Hi @venox
Remembered this game against Norwich city, will always be one of my arsenal best goals
@adeuyi