Very few players have had an impact as Claude Makalele in football.

The
Frenchman was a fierce tackler, a ferocious midfield terrier and above all an
aggressive ball winner. Such were the former Real Madrid and Chelsea
midfielders ball winning abilities, a special term was coined after him in the
early 2000s, the Makalele role.
With the central defensive midfielder being one of the most crucial positions in
any tactical setup today, we take a look at Arsenals Francis Coquelin and
Manchester Uniteds summer signing Morgan Schneiderlin and compare the two
Frenchmen based on stats.
I would like to state at first that Coquelin and Schneiderlin are not like to like
players. The former is an effective defensive midfielder with limited passing
range while the latter reads the game perfectly, puts in tackles more often, has
an enviable passing array but isnt a great interceptor in the middle of the park.
So why the comparison? Earlier tactical expert Michael Cox had written in ESPN
that he feels Coquelin disrupts Arsenals fluidity and it might be better off if the
24 year old is replaced by club captain Mikel Arteta to enable the Gunners having
a ball player in the middle. While I completely agree with Cox in this regard given
Arsene Wengers selection dilemmas in accommodating Aaron Ramsey and Santi
Cazorla in the side, he fails to look at the bigger picture.
I cannot stress enough on Arsenals need of a defensive midfielder and the
reasons have been well documented by many. Coquelin is like a modern day
Makalele who reads the game well, has the most average interceptions in a
game but fails to pick out his team mate lacking a dynamic passing range. This
however doesnt mean that he should be dropped with Arteta getting the nod.
Firstly, the former Everton man is not a defensive midfielder but he rather
morphed his passing ability to now become a holder but one who is shy on
tackling.
Patrick Vieira too never had great passing ability but was the Invincibles Engine
Room. Vieira was as fit as a butchers dog, could dictate the tempo of the game,
score when forwards failed and above all created chances too being a box to box
midfielder. This is exactly what Yaya Toure provides to Manchester City. Its true
that Coquelin doesnt create enough like Ramsey or Cazorla, misplaces passes
quite too often, so what? Makalele was also made the same mistakes yet
achieved legendary status.
Arsene Wenger could easily shift to a 4-3-3 diamond if he is to solve the
problems that Coxs highlights. The trio of Ramsey, Cazorla and Coquelin could
rotate in their positions with Mesut Ozil in the number ten role. Alexis Sanchez
and Theo Walcott would pull the strings playing from the wings and then cut
inside playing in advanced roles.
Schneiderlin on the other hand had his best season last term for Southampton
alongside anchorman Victor Wanyama. He is more of a box to box player but
rather than a defensive midfielder, he plays slightly further up the pitch (More

like a modern day Fernando Redondo in that sense). The Argentine

(Redondo)who excelled playing for Real Madrid in the late 1990s relied on his
brilliant reading of the opposition play, making crucial interceptions and then
initiating attacks with his crisp passing. Redondo could also play the deep lying
playmaker role to perfection, the regista role which has been made famous by
Italys Andrea Pirlo.
Stats are always open to interpretation but sometimes they dont make a good
read. Squawka suggests that Coquelin wins possession back more often than
Schneiderlin and makes more interceptions despite having less tackles.
Thus taking a stance on who outweighs the other is tough. However, there is one
point worth noting: every successful modern day teams have three well defined
set of midfielders: the destroyer, the passer and the creator. Its more like
running a factory with more hands thus making the work light (the division of
labour rule).
Rafa Benitez mastered the art with Liverpool having Javier Mascherano, Xabi
Alonso and Steven Gerrard but his Liverpool side narrowly missed out on the
Premier League to another man who had learnt the rule too: Sir Alex Fergsuon,
who deployed creator (Paul Scholes), the destroyer (Darren Fletcher) and the
passer (Michael Carrick) in similar roles. Pep Guardiolas Barcelona too had
Sergio Busquets, Xavi and Andres Iniesta as the Camp Nou side revolutionised
football through their tiki-taka philosophy. Thus the importance of having a
destroyer and a passer is equally important to any side who go on to win
trophies.
This season could well define who among Coquelin and Schneiderlin will have
more impact but parameters would only be well defined if they similar positions.
Apparently thats not the case.