Arsenal: Calum Chambers growing completely different than Rob Holding

Arsenal’s two young English centerbacks may have their similarities, but they are maturing in completely different ways.

Given the recent state of this defense, it may not be the most popular thing to say, but I’ll say it anyway. I, for one, am thrilled that Arsenal are allowing their defense to get younger. The current average age of this defensive three is 23. What a blessing, that our defensive future could be set for some time.

And that includes Rob Holding and Calum Chambers, both of whom have fallen under steep criticism given the state of the defense, but it’s hard to completely blame them.

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Two 22-year-old English centerbacks were always going to draw comparisons, and as such, I think that they unfairly get roped into the same critique pool, but if you actually focus in on the two and how they are maturing, you will see stark contrasts.

For Rob Holding, the more he struggles or stresses, the bigger role he seems to want to play. He was mocked for “thinking himself Toni Kroos” against Bournemouth because he felt the need to press high up the pitch with the ball, something that he has been doing more of.

When he gets the ball, he isn’t always content with hoofing it away under pressure. Again, to cite and example against Bournemouth, when he was pressured by Callum Wilson, he made the ill-advised decision to dribble all the way from his left hand side, across the face of goal and to Hector Bellerin’s touchline, where he was fortunate to see Wilson touch the ball last.

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It’s hard to criticize the mindset of wanting to do more, but you have to criticize the decision-making, as, to put it simply, he just isn’t the guy to take the reigns.

Calum Chambers has been taking the exact opposite approach. After a calamitous beginning to his Premier League career this season which saw him forfeiting possession as he tried to drive the ball up field, Chambers has adjusted by doing the opposite as Holding.

When pressured or panicked at all, Chambers just boots the ball away in any direction where there is no danger.

It’s been three matches in a row now where I have complimented his no-nonsense defending, and that’s because it does deserve so much credit. When the defense is struggling with positional astuteness and discipline, the best thing you can do in nervy situations is push the reset.

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We have two very promising young defenders and it’s important not to write them off because of perceived mistakes. There is a future in both of them, even if they are arriving at that future at different times.

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