Arsenal: Rob Holding has lost out to Shkodran Mustafi

Arsenal had a defensive question to answer with Tottenham lurking at the weekend, and it looks like they answered with an “L” for Rob Holding.

Unai Emery used a back three against Bournemouth, which expended all three available centerbacks that Arsenal had on the books. It set the club up for a serious predicament, given the need to not take Vorskla for granted while still being fit as can be against Tottenham.

With Koscielny and Mavropanos still unavailable, and the likelihood of a return to a back four against the Spurs, it was a question of what Emery was going to do against Vorskla, and how he was going to keep two defenders fresh despite only having three centerbacks.

Emery went with Carl Jenkinson and Rob Holding in a move that made it pretty clear what was happening. Jenko played his role incredibly well, mostly perpetuated by his will to be there and his passion for the club.

Rob Holding, meanwhile, was the senior member of the centerback pairing. He’s been a regular in the Premier League, but his appearance on the back line in this one seems to seal his fate – he’s been demoted.

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Okay, I’ll stop being dramatic now. He hasn’t been demoted. But it would seem like he has lost out to Shkodran Mustafi. Because if the plan was to start Holding against Tottenham, than it likely would have been Mustafi back there against Vorskla, and not Holding, right?

Neither Mustafi nor Sokratis were on the bench in this one, meaning that it will be those two, the old pairing, back at it against Spurs in that crucial North London Derby.

There’s nothing wrong with what has happened here, even if you find it unjust that Holding has been pushed down the bench, or if you feel like it should have been Mustafi instead. Rather, it’s probably for the best. Mustafi and Sokratis were actually learning to play quite well together, whereas Holding and Mustafi were still a bit flimsy.

And as for Holding and Sokratis, well that hasn’t happened yet. Probably best not to try it for the firs time in such a crucial fixture.

Instead, Emery is reverting back to the pairing he trusts most – a pairing that we should actually have a decent faith in. Holding is the odd ball out. So he didn’t necessarily lose out to Mustafi. Rather, he lost out to experience.