“Unfortunately no one speaks about the performance of Rob Holding today. You should be happy, he is English, 20 years old. But I’m sorry he didn’t cost £55 million, so he cannot be good.”
When someone mentions Holding, these famous lines by Arsène Wenger back in 2016 always comes to mind.
This was at a time when our fanbase were clamoring for the signing of Shkodran Mustafi, but that is a topic for another day.
On the back of some excellent displays, let’s take a closer look at the rise of Rob Holding at Arsenal.
The show of promise: (2016/17)
Arsenal signed a 19 year old Holding, who was Bolton’s player of the season for a meagre fee of £2m. He was a player that was personally scouted by Steve Bould and recommended to Wenger.
Holding had a difficult match first up against a Liverpool side that were on the rise under Jurgen Klopp. However, since that game he started forming a solid partnership with club captain Laurent Koscielny.
When Mustafi was signed at a whooping £35m in 2016, (still the club’s record signing for a centre back) there is an obligation to play such a player.
However, at the end of that season, when Arsenal were in crisis, the player Wenger turned towards to shore things up at the back was Holding.
His excellent defensive displays against Manchester City and Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final and final in 2017 were vital. That iconic battle with Diego Costa in the Cup final was proof of his fighting mentality.
The bad form: (2017/18)
There was an air of expectation from the fanbase for Holding to continue his development and keep progressing – but remember, he was only 21 and a young player is bound to go through difficult patches. He lost his place in the side to Mustafi once again.
At the end of the season, he got back into the team and put in some solid displays, but on the whole, it was a very difficult season for a player who promised so much.
It must be mentioned though, that no defender was good this season for us. It was one of our worst seasons from a defensive point of view. The team lacked structure off the ball and we were all over the place – any centre back would have struggled in that set-up.
The start of consistency: (2018/19)
When Unai Emery took over the reins in 2018, Holding’s game went up a level. In the 12 games he played, Arsenal were unbeaten and averaged only 0.9 goals conceded per game. This was his best ever run with us and it was extremely unfortunate that it came to an end when he suffered a ruptured ACL of his left knee at Old Trafford.
Now, correlation doesn’t equal causation, but it was very evident that Holding was important in the way we defended in that run of games.
Unai Emery went on to admit later on that Holding’s injury had a direct impact on our defensive record which significantly worsened.
The post-injury difficulties: (2019)
When Holding returned in September 2019, he looked rusty, unsure in some moments and indecisive with his play. It is unsurprising when you consider how serious his injury was – the physical and psychological effects were always going to take time to overcome.
In Janiuary of 2020, Holding was last in Arsenal’s pecking order of centre backs. Chambers, Sokratis, Mustafi and Luiz were all getting picked over him.
In the 1-0 win over Leeds, fans started losing patience with Rob – he gave the ball away in dangerous areas on numerous occasions and on another day, he could have been made to pay.
Coming back to his pre-injury levels:
The COVID break between March-June was decisive for Holding. All he needed was time. In his second Premier league start under Arteta, he was named man of the match in our 2-0 away win at Southampton.
With heavy rotation taking place considering we were prioritising the FA Cup, Holding got more chances in the league, putting in yet another solid performance in our win against the Champions, Liverpool. This is something he went to repeat in the Community shield win as well.
The big game player:
Holding has always been a big game player – in the 17 games he’s played against the ‘big 6’ so far, Arsenal won 11, drew 3 and lost only 3 which is very impressive. He’s shown time and again that he can step up and match the very best.
Since 2017, Arsenal won 2 FA Cups and 2 community shields. Holding played in all 4 of them – he’s basically unbeaten at Wembley!
Holding has put in excellent displays up against the likes of Sadio Mane, Timo Werner and Marcus Rashford among others. These are players that are way quicker than he is, but Holding’s positional awareness and reading of the game is one step ahead – and in football, that can make all the difference.
The best run of his career:
This season, Holding has been a key part of a unit that has the second best league defensive record, only behind Manchester City – conceding just 20 goals in 21 games. It was very telling that Arteta was against Holding’s loan move to Newcastle which almost materialized in the summer.
He saw great value in keeping the player and his consistent displays this season has seen him rewarded with a contract extension – it is well deserved.
While it is not his biggest strength, Holding’s passing is improving. He is said to be one of the hardest trainers in our squad and a leader.
Apart from yoga sessions, Holding has also started doing his coaching badges. After Arsenal won the FA Cup last season, Holding was one of the first to return to training, cutting short his holiday time. He is hungry to improve and is still only 25 which is a great age for a centre-back to go to that next level.
To conclude…
With hard work, you can get anywhere. Just a year ago, Holding was last in the order, looked like he’ll be sold but the way he’s fought back and earned his place deserves our appreciation. Whether Holding is going to be the long term player at right centre back for Arsenal remains to be seen, but one thing is clear – he is a great player to have in the squad.
Wenger’s quote has come true – The £2m signing of Holding has given the club a reliable defender who starts week in week out while the £35m man, Mustafi does not even make it to the squad as of today.
The truth about Holding is he isn’t as talented as some of the other modern-day center backs – but he’s always been a player who understands what he can, and cannot do – the sign of a good footballer is to be able to play within your limitations. And Holding epitomizes that.