Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger claims that midfielder Francis Coquelin had a great second half in the 2-1 win over Southampton on Saturday.

The French midfielder, who replaced Granit Xhaka in the starting eleven, struggled to impose himself in the opening stages of the game but grew into the contest in the latter stages which prompted a positive response from Wenger.

Wenger told arsenal.com: "He had a great second half, Francis today.

"I think we suffered a little bit in the first half, we adjusted our position in the second half and it was much better. From then on, Francis became stronger and stronger."