Flamini certain he can fill Coquelin's boots at Arsenal

Coquelin has impressed in a defensive midfield role but will be sidelined for three months after picking up a knee injury in Saturday's loss to West Brom. Arteta will be out for a month after suffering a calf strain in the same game.

Flamini certain he can fill Coquelin's boots at Arsenal

(Reuters)





Flamini, who is in the last year of his contract, is determined to grab his chance.

"The season is always very long so sometimes you have to accept being on the bench but sometimes you have the opportunity to prove you can still play in the Arsenal team," he was quoted as saying by British media.

"I have an opportunity to be back in the team and I will try to prove every game that I can be in the team."

The 31-year-old conceded it was hard to cope with the demands of playing top-flight football but said he was determined to prove he was worth a place in the side.

"Can I play twice a week for three months? I think I can but now it is my job to prove it. Fitness is hard to maintain," he added.

"For an athlete, if you don't play every week, it's not easy because the more games you have in your legs, the better you become.

"You gain in confidence, you become better physically, so the possibility to have game after game is obviously going to be good for me."

Flamini was upbeat about Arsenal's chances of advancing past the Champions League group stage for the 16th straight season.

The Gunners kept their hopes alive by dispatching Dinamo Zagreb 3-0 on Tuesday and will advance by beating Olympiakos Piraeus on Dec. 9 by two clear goals.

"We definitely can do it. We played beautiful football against Dinamo and scored three goals. Why not go to Athens and win by two goals?" Flamini said.

Arsenal next face Norwich City in the Premier League on Sunday.









(Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru)


Share

2 min read

Published

Source: Reuters



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world