Despite lots of calls from the Arsenal supporters for manager Arsene Wenger to bring in a defensive midfielder during the January transfer window former Arsenal player and now football pundit Martin Keown explains why it is not necessary following the Gunners 5-0 win over Aston Villa on Sunday.
Arsenal had been accused of poor defensive play, and of having a soft centre following the New Year’s Day loss to Southampton, yet since then they have turned a corner with Wenger improving them dramatically at the back helping Arsenal to their third straight clean sheet.
The Frenchman may still feel that he needs to bring in a defensive midfielder, but it should be only for cover just in case Francis Coquelin is unable to play.
The 23-year-old has been massive for Arsenal since being brought into the team in December rising from virtual obscurity after having been with the club for seven years, yet only making nine Premier League starts while spending all of last season away on loan at Freiburg.
The Frenchman’s recent form is testament to sticking with a player who despite being only 23-years-old would probably have been given up on by a club other than Arsenal with Wenger still seeing progress in him.
Keown says he talked to Wenger about Francis Coquelin and that the manager told him that every time he saw him play he thought he should be in the first team but decided to send him on loan the Charton Athletic in November to get a little more experience before recalling him to go straight into the Gunners starting XI.
You might get the impression that Coquelin has just taken over from Flamini, but the truth is he plays much higher up the pitch, and is not being asked to do the defending on his own with Aaron Ramsey and Santi Cazorla knowing they also have a defensive role to play.
