Francis Coquelin believes Arsenal’s 2-1 victory over Leicester has put them back on track despite a stuttering performance against the Premier League’s bottom club.

The Gunners looked less than convincing in Tuesday’s clash at Emirates Stadium, but they held on to climb back above Tottenham in the Premier League table, just days after defeat by their north London neighbours.

And Coquelin expects the Leicester win to stand Arsenal in good stead as they prepare to resume their defence of the FA Cup this weekend, facing Championship leaders Middlesbrough for a place in the quarter-finals.

“It’s always difficult when you lose a big game like we did on Saturday,” said the French midfielder. “It was a big blow for everyone and we had to pull ourselves up.

“The most important thing is to get in the top four and everything is going to be tight again, so it was important to win. It was a tough game and Leicester played really well, but we dug in and at the end we got three points.

“The three points is the main thing, to get the machine going again. Now we have a game coming up in the FA Cup against Middlesbrough and we need to focus on that.

“Hopefully we can get through to the quarter-final. Obviously that is the target for the club, especially after all the teams that have gone out.”

Coquelin is relishing the prospect of helping the Gunners to glory this season, having come in from the cold to nail down a regular place in the starting line-up over the last six weeks.

Previously shunted out on loan to Lorient and Freiburg, the 23-year-old was recalled from another loan spell at Charlton to cover for Arsenal’s injury crisis and has since produced a string of consistent performances.

“That’s how football goes sometimes,” Coquelin observed. “Obviously I’m enjoying it and I always had the confidence in myself.

“Arsenal is a big club, there are loads of players and when you get your chance you need to grab it and show what you can do.

“It took a bit of time for me but in the end I got my chance, now I’m trying to do my best for the team.”