A selection of the Arsenal supporters have hailed the showing of Laurent Koscielny following the club’s 2-0 win over Napoli in the home leg of the Europa League quarter-final on Thursday.
The club-captain had missed the previous two games against Newcastle United and Everton with foot and groin injury concerns, but he made a comeback to the Gunners backline for the crunch tie against Carlo Ancelotti’s side.
Right from the off, the Frenchman offered the much-needed stability which was lacking during the recent defeat at Everton, and he managed to produce a consistent performance over the entire 90 minutes.
The centre-back was comfortable in controlling the game against the Naples attack and he made sure to cover up for the mistakes, especially from Nacho Monreal, who had a tough time dealing with Lorenzo Insigne in the second half.
Here are some of the tweets over Koscielny’s performance;
https://twitter.com/DezilDezz/status/1116443727353008130
I’ve praised Koscielny so many times down the years and I shall do so once more.
What an exceptional defender and leader at the back.
— The Arsenal (@DareToWenger) April 11, 2019
Koscielny was fantastic tonight. Too many people (including myself) thought he was finished after his last injury. What a guy. My captain.
— 1886 (@1886_blog) April 11, 2019
Koscielny brings such stability man. Top top player. Really hope we can squeeze another season of of him.
— . (@Blahovic) April 11, 2019
https://twitter.com/Kieran_B91/status/1116418054714482690
https://twitter.com/danny_gooner/status/1116450730318147601
Koscielny did not have the best of returns following an Achilles injury earlier in the season, and a section of the fans were critical regarding his return performance at Southampton, where the Gunners succumbed to a 3-2 loss.
However, he has since managed to improve on his performances on a game-by-game basis, and over the past few months, he has been by far the best defender on the field with key interceptions at the heart of the backline.
Sokratis and Koscielny in particular have formed an impressive bond since the turn of the year, but the duo won’t feature together at Watford on Monday night, with the former picking up a two-game suspension after racking 10 yellow cards for the league campaign.
