LONDON -- Arsenal midfielder Francis Coquelin says he has fully recovered from his latest injury scare, and insisted that the added competition from Granit Xhaka is "good for me."
Coquelin, 25, could make his return to the starting lineup in Wednesday's Champions League home game against Ludogorets Razgrad after recovering more quickly than expected from a knee injury he suffered against Chelsea last month.
The Frenchman admitted he initially feared another long layoff similar to last season, when he missed nearly three months with damaged knee ligaments, but was back on the bench against Swansea City on Saturday and came on as a second-half substitute.
"When you make this kind of tackle, and it happened before, I was a bit scared because it was a similar tackle," Coquelin told a news conference. "But the good thing was that when I'd done it I could run back onto the pitch even though I didn't stay on for long.
"And after we saw the scan was all positive, so it was great news. I feel 100 percent. It took me a couple of weeks to come back to full fitness but I feel good."
The fact that Arsene Wenger brought Coquelin to the prematch news conference might suggest that the holding midfielder could start on Wednesday instead of Xhaka, who was sent off for a cynical tackle in the 3-2 Premier League win over Swansea.
Coquelin had been keeping Xhaka out of the starting lineup before his injury, to the frustration of some fans who wanted to see the £30 million summer signing on the pitch.
Coquelin emerged as Arsenal's first-choice holding midfielder in 2014, but now faces competition from both Xhaka and Mohamed Elneny, who was bought in January. Coquelin, though, said that only serves as added motivation.
"Let's not forget we are Arsenal Football Club, and there's always going to be great quality in the squad. So you have to be ready for a fight," he said. "I think it's good for me as well to improve my game and to give even more in training and in the game. It can only improve the whole squad."
Wenger said there were no new injuries after the Swansea game, with striker Olivier Giroud and midfielder Aaron Ramsey still unavailable, but the Arsenal boss gave little away when asked if he will rest some of his regular starters against a team that the Gunners are widely expected to beat.
"At the moment we are just looking at how players recover, what is the next game and how can we win the next game," Wenger said.
Arsenal are on a six-game winning streak in the league, and also beat Basel convincingly at home in the Champions League last month.
They now face Ludogorets in their next two group games, providing a great opportunity to take a strong grip on Group A, which also includes Paris Saint-Germain.
Wenger, though, warned against complacency against the Bulgarian side.
"As soon as you ease off a little bit you are in trouble, because the differences between the teams are very small," Wenger said. "Ludogorets have big experience now in the Champions League. I watched their game against Paris Saint-Germain, they were a very good side.
"What looks sometimes like kind fixtures can be very difficult if you don't prepare mentally. We have to show we are an ambitious team with an ambitious squad and just show that we can turn up in every single game."