• Premier League

Ramsey: Coquelin proving his class at Arsenal

Aaron Ramsey believes Francis Coquelin could establish himself as a high-class defensive midfielder after his performance in the victory at Manchester City.

Coquelin, who was making just his 13th Premier League start, impressed in a defensive midfield role in Arsenal's 2-0 win at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

And while the Frenchman was on loan at Championship club Charlton earlier this season, fellow midfielder Ramsey thinks the 24-year-old could be destined for the top.

Francis Coquelin was on loan at Championship club Charlton earlier this season © Getty Images

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"He has done well. He's at that age now where he understands the game a lot more and he has done really well in the last few weeks," said Ramsey.

"It is funny how quickly things can change in football. One week he was on loan at Charlton and then he comes back in and he has been in the team every week. He has done a very good job defensively for the team.

"He wins it back, keeps it simple and just keeps things ticking over. Hopefully he can build on his performances that he has been showing of late and he has got every chance of turning into a top defensive midfielder."

Ramsey felt Arsenal showed they had learned lessons from past heavy defeats against elite sides as they won a first away match against City, Chelsea or Manchester United since 2010.

"It was important to [get a win away from home against a big team]," he added. "We have always been confident coming into these games but we have been a bit too open in the past and we have paid the price for that.

"Today, we defended really well. We kept our team shape tight defensively and we took our chances when we needed to.

"We have shown what we are capable of doing. We are going to have chances in games.

"We are a team that can always create opportunities to score so the important thing is to defend as a team and stop them from scoring because we are always going to get opportunities to score. So if we can keep a clean sheet like we did, we are always going to have a chance to win."

Arsenal knew before kick-off that Southampton, Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham and West Ham had all taken three points in their weekend matches and Ramsey enjoyed a result that boosted their hopes of a top-four finish.

"It was important to win because all the other teams won," he said. "The pressure was on us. Manchester City have made this place a fortress over the years. Not many teams come away with three points so we are delighted with the way we went about it and we are happy we closed the gap."

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