Francis Coquelin says that with the talent Arsenal have at the club, they should be higher up the table than they are right now.
The French midfielder pointed to bad periods in November and again in spring, and suggested the team ‘eased off’ at critical junctures, leaving them 13 points behind leaders Leicester.
“There’s always a part in the season where we drop off a little bit and ease off, playing so well and then suddenly change,” he told Sky Sports.
“With the talent we’ve got and the potential we’ve got, we should be higher in the table. When you look at the potential in the team we have, it’s normal that the fans and everyone expects us to win the title.
“It hasn’t happened for so long and you can understand the frustration of the fans, and we all do get frustrated as well, because we do want this title. We want it badly as well.”
Injuries had an effect, but the 24 year old said that’s something they should have been able to cope with better.
“This season we had quite a lot of injuries at the same times. Santi, Alexis, I got injured as well, and when the team was in a good run.
“It was difficult to take, but injuries are always going to happen in a season. At the end of the day you have to get the result.”
And as we know, too often we didn’t do that. He goes on to talk about finishing with 6 wins, and that you never know what might happened, but I think we all know.
….and we also know what’ll happen next season as well!
Ramsey should have been put on the bench. He unbalances the midfield and therefore the whole build-up. But he is one of Arsène’s favs…
Really don’t get this Ramsey bashing.
Don’t recall fans voicing their displeasure when he went through that purple match two seasons ago. He was described by some as one of the best midfielders in Europe at that time.
and what has he done since then ?
he abandoned his defensive duties and just focused on bombing forward all the time, which hasn’t worked out for him.
that ramsey of two seasons ago and coquelin would be one of the best if not the best midfield duo around…
yes two seasons ago…this season he has been poor…and should have been benched…it took an injury to him for Wenger to finally play Elneny…Wenger does have his favourites..Walcott comes to mind also…anyway we are
are where we are because thats where we deserve to be
Yes but is he going to have a season like that again? Doubtful. The way we were set up that campaign suited him very well – we lacked pace (aside from Walcott; Ox was injured most of that one) and his energy and late runs into the box brought a lot to our game. His goals have often resulted in far too many people overlooking the flaws to his game. He slows our game down, he lacks any sense of positional discipline, and isn’t particularly creative. He can be a bit of a lightning rod for criticism, true, but he’s… Read more »
A footballeris as good as his last game
At the time he was..
Patch, not match.
Doesn’t matter which article you read you always see someone bashing Ramsey here. He hasn’t been exceptional but not nearly as bad as some say here. Remember he had to play with Flamini, nobody looks good playing with Flamini. The obvious biggest problem this season has been that Flamini has played so many games because Wenger didn’t sign that back up DM in the summer when it was obvious he needed to as coquelin couldn’t play all the games. Also Chambers should have gotten a chance instead of Flamini, who knows he could have done a bellerin and made the… Read more »
There is always someone bashing Flamini and you’ve just proved that.
its not ‘bashing’ flaming, it’s not his fault he’s well-past his best player who’s now fairly limited and should be nowhere near our first 11, it’s the fault of the manager for not buying adequate cover and higher calibre players!
Couldn’t agree more. The Ramini midfield combo didn’t work for a variety of reasons, but Flamini being apparently ‘shit’ isn’t one of them. He just lacks mobility, which means that whoever is with him in the middle of the park must compensate for that by basically doing all the work that Flamini cannot do – i.e all the hard running. Which is ok for Ramsey if he actually didn’t overplay it and fail to do whatever Flamini or other teammates asked him. I maybe guilty at times of Ramsey-bashing, but not always. I am usually one of his biggest fans… Read more »
So Flamini and Ramsey played 12 games together in central midfield. We lost 2. We got 24 points from 12 games (including 3 in the Champions League). They came in when Cazorla got injured against Norwich. at that point we had 33 points from 19 games. (including the Champions League). With El Coq we have got 8 points from 4 games and gone out of the FA Cup at home to Watford. Results-wise, Flamini and Ramsey has been our best central midfield combo this season. Full stop. And they didn’t have the advantage of playing with Sanchez (or Welbeck in… Read more »
The worst thing that happened to Ramsey was Wenger over-relying on his versatility. The man should have been trying to perfect a right-sided forward role and rediscover his offensive mojo but he had to perform multiple tasks instead. Was his execution often poor in attacking areas? Yes. Did he find the right balance between attacking and defending? No. Should we sell him? Only if you’re insane. No other midfielder’s forward runs were as effective in making space in forward areas, esp. during the period when NO-ONE was creating apart from Ozil. Without him to replace Santi’s ball possession and distribution… Read more »
Eased off. What a load of shit. Rabbits in headlights more like.
No shit Sherlock #2
I don’t think it’s the rabbit in the headlights, I think there’s not enough depth in the squad. We are an injury prone club.
Therefore we need decent backup for when players get injured. It’s been obvious for a while and I hope Wenger realises that this summer he has to spend as well as move on some of the players like Arteta, Flamini and Rosicky.
A world class striker please Mr. Wenger.
No offence, but that’s an easy answer that I disagree with. How much depth do Leicester have? How many of their players would get in our team based on ability alone?
Unless the manager changes (unlikely) or is replaced (when that happens is anybody’s guess) the playing personnel won’t affect the inherent brittleness displayed over the course of a season.
Leicester have very little depth but have had almost no injuries this season. In that, they are similar to last year’s champions, Chelsea, who also kept their first XI fit for the entirety of the campaign. It’s a common thread for league winners, and not just in England. Had they missed their first choice midfield or either one of Vardy and Mahrez for several months, chances are they wouldn’t be where they are now. For your second question, it’s hard to know whether this is a sign of things to come for Vardy, Mahrez and Kante or whether it was… Read more »
Well written,Sir.
Wenger plays his favourites into the ground while other players rust on the bench. Until the manager learns to manage a squad properly the names will change and the problems will stay the same. It was obvious to me that the players were knackered by Christmas and there were so many injuries there was no rest for those carrying the team. We seem to have five or six players giving everything trying to carry others who don’t put a shift in. The manager consistently plays Walcott over Joel, and when Rosicky is fit he’s usually ignored by the manager even… Read more »
It may be honest, but it’s falling to hear this crap. Shame the club didn’t ease off transferring bucket loads of salary to the squad while they are freewheeling. Or maybe ticket prices could be eased to coincide with the lads spells on easy street.
‘Galling’ not falling iPhone, like your spellchecker
Check before you post?
They have no heart. Mentally weak. Ramsey a big part of that.
I totally disagree with his statement about them wanting the trophy. Whilst there are certainly individuals that are hungry for success, the club as a whole is far from convincing me that they have the hunger and drive to match that statement. The number of times that we’ve capitulated, not shown up or simply couldn’t have been bothered is clear evidence of that. Leicester have consistently demonstrated that drive and I certainly wouldn’t have given them a chance at the start of the season but that is exactly the difference betwen a positive kick ass team mentality and us. Sadly… Read more »
Agree 100%. I watched a couple of ends of Leicester games expecting them to concede goals for our delight. On set pieces, all Leicester players were very closely watching their teamates positions screaming to make them aware of any potential danger. You may be a striker, if you really want to win the game, you try to prevent any single ball to end up as a goal against your team.
Never a good sign when the Coq eases off.
Hahahqhahqhahahahahahahahahahahahaha they never get old
Your dumb ads red against spuds didn’t help either
Ozil, Cazorla, Hector, Alexis, Cech, Ospina, Monreal, Campbell and Welbeck. These are the guys who show some professionalism while talking to the media. Rest all behave like Sunday league players.
At least someone at the club acknowledges the obvious: the team massively underachieved this season.
There are ample room for improvement in this squad if you leave your heart out of it and think what is best for the club. I do feel Wenger gets to attached to his players sometimes and hold on to them through thick and thin even though the club would be better served with finding a replacement. What does it get him in the end though? Look at Van Persie, the guy spent more time in the sick bay than on the pitch during his 8 years at Arsenal but allways enjoyed Wengers deppeat sympathy and respect. Then he finally… Read more »
I think the words “eased off” is a disgrace (counting chickens before they are hatched) but oh so Arsenal/Wenger!!!