Arsenal: Sokratis injury gives Rob Holding another chance

Sokratis was withdrawn at half-time in Greece’s 2-0 defeat to Finland with a reported ankle issue. His injury provides Arsenal’s Rob Holding with another chance to start.

It’s often the case that injuries are the great provider. Players that are waiting for their opportunity may not get given it until an injury to a starter occurs. There have plenty of examples at Arsenal over the years.

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Hector Bellerin took advantage of Mathieu Debuchy’s injury problems. Wojciech Szczesny displaced Manuel Almunia thanks to fitness issues. Matteo Guendouzi only started the season because Unai Emery was cautious with Lucas Torreira. Rob Holding is now being handed his second chance to follow in the same footsteps.

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The 23-year-old is the first reserve at centre-half. With Calum Chambers on loan and Laurent Koscielny rehabbing from an Achilles problem, Holding is the third-choice central defender in the squad.

He sits behind Sokratis and Shkodran Mustafi in the pecking order, the latter of which is a largely unconvincing and unreliable option; the former of which is a new signing parachuted in from the Bundesliga after an inconsistent season with Borussia Dortmund. Holding may not have been a starter, but there was a clear path to become one.

That path has been laid out rather clearly in recent weeks. Sokratis hobbled off against Everton with knee soreness and Holding was thrust into the starting line-up. He has started every match in all competitions since and looked mightily impressive, in both a back four and a back three.

Sokratis was scheduled to return to the team after the international break. But he was withdrawn at half-time with a reported ankle problem and is now a doubt for Monday’s match against Leicester City — as of writing, there have been no developments on the severity of the injury.

If Sokratis does miss time, Holding will the man in line to inherit the starting role, as he did previously, fielded alongside Mustafi. It is not inconceivable that Holding could now enjoy a run of three or four starts in succession — Arsenal play four matches before the end of October, all of which Sokratis could very easily miss.

This is a second chance for Holding to build on the impressive case he began to make during the first few matches from Sokratis’ first period of absence. Mustafi has been hardly impressive this season and Emery challenged Holding to earn a starting role last time out. There is an opportunity for the towering, composed, ball-mastering defender to win a long-term place in the starting XI.

It remains to be seen whether Holding can take advantage of this opening. But I am sure he will chomping at the bit to try and impress Emery once again. And this time, he may just succeed.