A look at Arsenal star Francis Coquelin’s incredible 2015 so far, which sees him outperforming Manchester United, Chelsea, Southampton and Tottenham midfielders.
The performances of Francis Coquelin for Arsenal have been key to the club’s success in 2015.
Having been playing for Charlton Athletic in the Championship on loan in November, his transformation into a powerful and tenacious defensive midfielder pulling the strings for Arsene Wenger’s side has been remarkable to see.
Hailed as ‘the detective’ by Arsenal legend Thierry Henry for his instinct to hunt down danger, the Frenchman has already earned himself a new contract, having been previously expected to leave the club at the end of the season.
Here is a look at his phenomenal 2015 and how he outperforms many of his peers in crucial areas…
| Team | Interceptions Won per game | Tackles won per game | Ball Recoveries per game | Touches per game | Passing Accuracy | Appearances | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Francis Coquelin | Arsenal | 4.38 | 3.46 | 9.77 | 74.92 | 84% | 13 |
| Daley Blind | Man Utd | 4.08 | 1.58 | 5.42 | 86.17 | 87% | 12 |
| Morgan Schneiderlin | Southampton | 3.22 | 3.22 | 7.78 | 74.56 | 90% | 9 |
| Jack Cork | Swansea / Southampton | 2.9 | 1.2 | 8.1 | 65.9 | 85% | 10 |
| Matthew James | Leicester | 2.9 | 1.7 | 6.8 | 54.6 | 81% | 10 |
| Cheikhou Kouyaté | West Ham | 2.9 | 1.6 | 4.8 | 48 | 82% | 10 |
| Nabil Bentaleb | Tottenham | 2.8 | 2.4 | 6.7 | 74.5 | 85% | 10 |
| Victor Wanyama | Southampton | 2.18 | 2 | 5.64 | 60.09 | 83% | 11 |
| Nemanja Matic | Chelsea | 1.91 | 2.55 | 9.27 | 79.91 | 83% | 11 |
| Claudio Yacob | West Brom | 1.9 | 2 | 6.1 | 45.1 | 76% | 10 |
| Alexandre Song | West Ham | 1.73 | 2.64 | 10.55 | 58.45 | 72% | 11 |
The list of players Coquelin is outperforming reads like a who’s who of the Premier League. His ability to read the game and make interceptions combined with his combative nature is paying off not only for him but Arsenal who are on a winning streak and are still outsiders for the title if Chelsea slip up.
Coquelin has made more interceptions per game in 2015 than any Premier League midfielder, and more tackles per game.
Only Alex Song narrowly records more ball recoveries than Coquelin (10.55 per game compared to 9.77), but the current Arsenal star manages an average of 16 more touches per game overall compared to his predecessor.
It’s a level of performance from Coquelin that Arsenal would have expected to pay big money for in the January transfer window, but this time at least he is proving Arsene Wenger was right not to spend.
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