Francis Coquelin hoping he can help guide Arsenal into FA Cup final for his grandmother, who died recently
The central midfielder missed a couple of games for the Gunners to attend the funeral, and now has a job to carry out
FRANCIS COQUELIN has spoken of the heartbreak after his grandmother died three weeks ago.
Arsenal’s French midfield ace, 25, missed two games earlier this month to be with his family ahead of her funeral in France.
Coquelin admitted: “It’s been a difficult couple of months to see her health go down. For everything she has done for me in my life, she was a second mum to me.
“I was losing a big piece of my heart.
“Even talking now about her like this is weird because just a few weeks ago I was eating a meal with her back in France.
“This shows how quickly things can happen in life. She was so important to me and it’s a massive loss to me.
“It is all the small things that you remember. She used to take me to school, she would take me to football, she’d do everything.
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“Even now, when I walk about, there are small details that remind me of her. If I eat something, I’ll remember her because she cooked that particular dish for me.
“I watched a movie the other day — and it reminded me of her.
“I was in France last week to visit her grave and it’s difficult now because she cannot answer me. But I feel as though I’m still in contact and can talk to her.”
Coquelin says he will carry his grandmother in his heart every time he steps out on to the field.
He said: “I found out about her death just one day before we played Manchester City in the Premier League.
“It was a special game for me. I wanted to win it for her but was happy in my head that we didn’t lose, we got a point.
“I didn’t want to lose and then go back to France for the funeral. She will be with me at Wembley!”
Close bonds have been a feature of Coquelin’s footballing journey and it hurts him to imagine Arsenal without Arsene Wenger.
That is why the French midfielder has vowed to fight — not only to ensure the club reach a third FA Cup final in just four years by beating Manchester City at Wembley today, but also to put in a performance for his manager.
Coquelin was back in the Arsenal squad for Monday’s 2-1 win at Middlesbrough.
But that victory cannot gloss over a run of five Premier League defeats in their last nine matches which has left the Gunners facing the prospect of finishing outside the top four for the first time in Wenger’s 21-year reign.
Criticism of Wenger upsets Coquelin, who rose through Arsenal’s ranks after joining the club at 17.
He said: “The manager has played a big part in my career and I don’t want to see him in this position.
“It hurts. I want the team to regroup and get the points we need.
“Arsene has been amazing for every player in this team. We need to perform not just for us but also for the manager. It’s tough for us at the moment but we need to give him back what he has given us down the years.”
Wenger is yet to reveal whether he is staying or going at the end of this season.
But Coquelin admitted: “It would feel strange if he wasn’t here.
“You can ask even someone who doesn’t have a clue about football what name would they associate with Arsenal Football Club . . . and it would be Arsene Wenger.
“I cannot see anyone else being in his position. That’s why I want him to stay for as long as he can.
“If the whole team can help him do that — because we need results — I’m more than happy.”
But Coquelin also says he understands the supporters’ protests because he is an Arsenal fan, too.
He said: “We should be affected by it because the fans are part of the team.
“I can understand when things don’t go our way they would be upset. I’m an Arsenal fan as well.
“I don’t want our supporters to feel this way. All I can say is we’ll work hard to turn this around.
“But I must say I feel they’re behind us.
“Our stadium is still full and when we played Manchester City in the league, despite the fact we hadn’t been getting good results, they were still behind us. Even when we were 1-0 or 2-1 down, they were willing us on.
“We need to bring the fans with us and that’s what they expect from the team. We need to get back to what we know we’re capable of.”
Coquelin is adamant there is a great team spirit.
And he said: “The good thing is everyone gets on with each other and we stick together. We organise stuff outside of football all the time and that shows that we all like to be with each other both on and off the pitch.
“We go out for meals, go to the cinema . . . the usual things that most people do.”