Laurent Koscielny signed for Arsenal in July 2010 for a reported fee of £10m from French club Lorient. Coming here he was much of an unknown quantity, only signing for Lorient from Ligue 2 club Tours in July of the previous year, but Koscielny made great strides that season earning rave reviews in France and being closely watched by Wenger. Koscielny endured a difficult start to English football, mixing flashes of potential with a struggle to adapt to the physicality of the premier league – some Arsenal fans lambasted Wenger for signing a ‘lightweight’ Koscielny instead of Christopher Samba or Scott Dann but since then Koscielny has won over the entire fan base.
In modern day football one of the most scrutinized positions is the growing breed of ball playing centerbacks. These are centerbacks that aspire to be more than the majority of their predecessors, concentrating not just on defending when off the ball and recycling the ball into midfield but actually having a genuine impact on the attacking side of the game, whether that be from being on the ball or through split second ball retention.
