Charlton Athletic helped £12m Arsenal cash windfall in just 5 games | OneFootball

Francis Coquelin's five game spell for Charlton Athletic proved quite lucrative for Arsenal

Arsenal earned a cash windfall from the sale of one midfielder, and they have Charlton Athletic to thank for that.

Francis Coquelin came through the Gunners’ academy system, but it took him a while to establish himself as a part of the first team squad.

He went on stint to Lorient and SC Freiburg in France and Germany, but still wasn’t able to convince Arsene Wenger that he was ready for the Premier League.

This led to him going out on loan for a month to Charlton in November 2014, where he was immediately thrown into the team from the bench, coming on for the final half hour in a 2-2 draw against Leeds United in the Championship.

Coquelin made five total appearances for the Addicks, including three starts, before he was recalled by the Premier League side due to an injury crisis.

Charlton earned six points from a possible 15 in that run, and the Frenchman impressed with his performances, providing defensive solidarity to Bob Peeters’ side.

Francis Coquelin’s Charlton praise

Coquelin may have only played a handful of times for Charlton, but that brief spell still proved quite influential to his development into a Premier League player.

The now 34-year-old opened up on the impact of his stay at the Valley in the years following his role as a prominent Arsenal star.

He claimed that the chance to play regularly over a short spell helped build his confidence and his fitness, making him ready for a stint in Wenger’s injury-hit side.

"Without Charlton, I probably wouldn't be here," said Coquelin, via talkSPORT.

"I wasn't performing that well but they gave me the chance to play and I wasn't out of fitness when I came back.

"I think that helped me a lot."

The London outfit will be wishing they could’ve held onto him for longer than just a few weeks given the player he went on to become.

The Addicks were in their third year back in the Championship after gaining promotion, and were looking to improve on their 18th place finish in the previous campaign.

Peeters ultimately departed as manager midway through the term, with Guy Luzon overseeing the team in his place.

Charlton finished 12th in the table, missing out on the play-offs by 18 points, but were relegated back to the third tier just a year later.

Francis Coquelin netted Arsenal £12 million

Coquelin went on to make 22 appearances for Arsenal in the Premier League that season, with the team earning a third place finish.

He played a total of 84 times in the top flight for the Gunners during his time at the club, including on 26 occasions as they fought for the title in 2015/16, missing out to Leicester City.

But he fell down the pecking order by the time he was sold, earning Arsenal a fee worth a reported £12 million from Valencia.

Unfortunately for Charlton, they received no share of this eight-figure sum, at a time when any kind of money would’ve been beneficial for their competitive outlook.

The Addicks were in League One when Coquelin moved to Spain in January 2018, and were pushing for a play-off place, but they ultimately missed out on promotion despite earning a top six finish.

The midfielder spent two-and-a-half seasons at Valencia before signing for La Liga rivals Villarreal, where he went on to win the 2021 Europa League under Unai Emery.

The 34-year-old may not have achieved the ultimate success in English football, but he still proved himself as a top player in Spain.

The Frenchman is now seeing out the final years of his career at Nantes, having joined the Ligue 1 side in 2025.

As he comes to the final seasons of his playing days, he will still look back fondly on his brief spell at the Valley, as it proved crucial to him having such a successful career.