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Arsenal will reject offers for 25-year-old as he is in Arteta’s plans

Arsenal will reject offers for Rob Holding in this transfer window, according to Football London.

The defender has been linked with a move to Newcastle United and Leicester City in recent times.

Steve Bruce targeted him for his Magpies last summer, but the Gunners managed to keep him for another season.

The defender has survived fresh competition from the likes of Gabriel Magalhaes and Pablo Mari to remain one of the more important players at the club.

The report claims the rumours of him leaving are untrue and he is preparing to return to full fitness in time for Arsenal’s league opener against Brentford this weekend.

Holding will face fresh competition from new boy, Ben White but the former Bolton man has shown on more than one occasion that he can cope with competition for a place in the Arsenal team.

It remains unclear who would be Arsenal’s centre back pairing in the upcoming campaign, but the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup matches mean there would be chances to play for almost all their defenders.

Holding has often suffered with his fitness and he will hope he can stay fit long enough to deliver consistent performances for the Gunners.

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40 Comments

  1. He’s better than Mari and has played as a right sided CB several times

    Simple. Drop Mari and play him and Whyte against Brentford

    2. Arteta deploy the CB pairing like righ and left sided so he can’t be paired alongside Mari unless the’re some injury concerns

  3. He’s a solid backup option. But Saliba would have been better so that he would get used to the league. I don’t know what’s going on between with Arteta and Saliba, but I can bet it’s not just the “…he’s not ready” thing. Holding will surely be kept this season but will likely be sold next season when Saliba classifies as homegrown

    1. Saliba?
      Did you ever see Saliba to be so sure of his competence to feature in the premier league? A 20 year kid playing for Arsenal in EPL week in and out?

      Not possible that’s he’s been sent on loan to a lower keague

      1. Havn. Don’t forget that half of Europe were after him as at the time Arsenal got him, to the point of even agreeing to let him play a full year with Saint Etienne despite arsenal being desperate for a defender…so desperate that we ended up panic buying David Luis to cover up until his arrival. He went to Nice in January and did excellently well again. That’s the same club that Fofana came from and he’s among the best young players in the league because he was given a chance. Even if he’s not starting, he should be a backup

      2. You called PSG league, a lower league. Can Arsenal defeat PSG in any competition even friendly. I doubt if we can beat Marseille presently. France, England, Germany, Italy,and Spain are all on par. Stop hyping the premier league.

  4. In the end Arteta is scared of real change, so we have Xhaka, Elneny, Holding and other malingerers still here. Arteta has his own sticky problems and is not fit to had all this summer transfer window only to end up with Xhaka, Bellerin, Elneny, Holding, etc, etc still here. Mickey Mouse club, with an incapable manager in charge. Sorry but that is what I see. So sad to have gone so far backwards….watching the poor, poor pre-season.

    1. So in your esteemed opinion, the reason we’ve failed to move on the players you mentioned is because Arteta rates them?

  5. I have no issues with Rob Holding, but the reality
    that the former Bolton man is one of Arteta’s most
    trusted CB’s is a transparent reminder IMHO of
    why AFC is a middle of the pack, EPL and CL
    non contender atm. He joins the following cast
    of characters as simply being not good enough if
    AFC are genuinely interested in challenging for
    the top four as well as domestic silverware.

    Torreria
    Xhaka
    El Neny
    Bellerin
    Mari
    WilIlan
    Kola
    AMN
    Nkietah
    Auba

    That’s almost half of the current first team, players
    that over the past two seasons have played a
    staggering amount of meaningful minutes.

    I’m by no means an Arteta apologist but fans
    clamoring for the Spaniard to improve the current
    lot or implement a system or style of play that
    caters to these players strengths just can’t seem
    to process how AVERAGE at best the roster is. The
    talent is improving but until Arsenal are able to
    add a new RB/CAM/CM/STK I personally don’t see
    anything better than a third consecutive 8th place
    finish.

    WTS this team would be a PITA to deal with this
    season

    LACA
    Pepe…Aouar…Saka
    Zakara…Partey
    Tierney…Gab….White….Atal(Mazraoui)
    Leno

    Balogun…Lokonga…Tavares…Chambers…Soares..
    Auba…Holding…Mari…ESR…Xhaka…Nelson…Ohana

    Sold or Loaned

    Willock
    Nkietah
    AMN
    Kola
    Bellerin
    Torreria
    El Neny
    Willian

    And Yes I realize this isn’t FIFA 2021. 😂😃

    1. Remove xhaka from that list and include either Torreira or Willian. That is if you move include someone.

    2. Absolutely agree.
      Unfortunately, far too many fans just don’t get it. Arteta has clearly been dealt a terrible hand some of which is a legacy of historically poor recruitment.
      However, some fans remain convinced that Arsenal with this list of average players should be challenging for top 4 or even the premier league title.

      1. He been dealt a terrible hand- that’s why no proven manager wanted the job after Emery. Arsenal haven’t really been at the top table for quite a while and once the rot sets in it’s devilishly hard to cut it out. Over time AW struggled to maintain the status quo and by then it has become successively harder to just stay still. I blame Kroenke’s ownership absolutely for the current situation.

        1. although I agree in part with the notion that Wenger, then Raul, left Arteta with quite a tire fire in their respective wakes, that can’t continually be used as an excuse for his continued poor decision-making…of course, it’s reasonable to blame Kroenke for hiring someone who clearly wasn’t ready to take on such a convoluted mess, but taking all the blame off Arteta’s plate is definitely a bridge too far unless you fell asleep before covid struck and just woke up yesterday

          1. Never intended that to be the case

            Could his decision making be down to any number of things apart from being new to his responsibilities?
            I mean that by my reckoning he isn’t a fool; the problems are deep rooted. Ozil’s deal was a financial catastrophe and various other transfers and contracts gave salaries that were not commensurate with abilities. Arteta has been – by his own choice – given a very difficult job. You know that I do believe he has ability and that he will do well even if it’s not at Arsenal. There are plenty of seasoned managers who would have been no better and probably a whole lot worse
            My fear is that the expectation of all of us is too much for any big name given what Kroenke put on the table

          2. I would certainly never suggest he was a fool, but it’s clear to me that he has an unjustified inflated sense of his own self-worth, managerially-speaking…in most professional sports, a coach/manager with little to no experience is usually surrounded by those with comparably more experience, in order to both guide them and to make sure they don’t put their own self-interests ahead of the greater good, from a long-term perspective, which was a course of action he clearly never pursued nor desired…of course, some might suggest that just because he worked under the universally-praised Pep that he should be automatically deemed as worthy of his present position, simply by osmosis, but even that makes little to no sense as no one who has occupied a similar position, under said manager, has ever gone on to have a successful managerial career…for me, Arteta had his chance, but he squandered it when he got a little sniff of success, following the FA, then immediately discarded the “rebuild” model, as was evident by his Willian move and subsequent selection choices that favoured more senior players, instead of taking the more difficult, yet infinitely more important, road less travelled

          3. We will discover soon enough if his ego is over inflated, as without one, success at the top level is important or even essential to counteract the egos of the squad. The Ozil saga showed that. His disregard , and those of his ‘circle’ for Emery being a case in point.

            In all seriousness, I don’t put too much weight on his relationship with Pep other than to recognise Arteta wanting a career in management and being determined and good enough to assist him. The crap about being his water boy etc from so many was gutter level nastiness.

            I’m virtually on my own for seeing good qualities in Arteta and certainly expect to be reminded of his ego and poor management skills come Christmas or before if results don’t improve. All I expect is a CLEAR sign of improvement. A failure to show that, and for me he is gone. The Arsenal job right now is not an easy fix. The club is in the doldrums waiting for that gust of wind. It may come under Arteta and if not, I seriously fear for us

          4. agree with your whole “water boy” sentiments, as I doubt that he would have balked at our earlier advances if that was the case…my deepest concerns revolve around your last statement, as I can see us seriously spiraling should he sh** the bed and we’re left with several disgruntled younger assets and no monies to spend…if that was the case, the only way out would be to sell all of our viable assets, like Saka, ESR, Tierney etc…and pray for something totally unplanned to save our proverbial asses

          5. I said from the outset that Kroenke should have hired a top man. As in top. He did the opposite but hasn’t truly supported the so called process. Abramovitch does with Chelsea, pouring millions into recruitment and then paying off underperforming managers if it goes tits up. Kroenke’s doing it on the cheap and that’s why I fear for the future if Arteta hasn’t got what it takes 😔.

          6. Agree in part, in that I would have been pumped by the possibility of us hiring Gasperini, ten Hag or Nagglesmann(of course, before his Munich hiring), as each fits the Arsenal profile, with it’s obvious financial constraints, which requires a more balanced approach when it comes to recruitment, asset management and youth development, much better than the Conte’s or Allegri’s of the footballing world

        2. Sue P, Kroenke IS undoubtedly at least 90% of the problem we have suffered from for well over a decade.
          He has been, EFFECTIVELY, in overall control since 2007/8, not 2011!

          GAZIDIS DID ENORMOUS LONG LASTING DAMAGE. SO MANY FANS CHOOSE NOT TO, OR ELSE ARE UNWILLING, TO SEE THIS TRUTH.

      2. although I agree in part with the notion that Wenger, then Raul, left Arteta with quite a tire fire in their respective wakes, that can’t continually be used as an excuse for his continued poor decision-making…of course, it’s reasonable to blame Kroenke for hiring someone who clearly wasn’t ready to take on such a convoluted mess, but taking all the blame off Arteta’s plate is definitely a bridge too far unless you fell asleep before covid struck and just woke up yesterday

        1. sorry for the double reply, something weird is going on with this site, especially recently

          1. TRVL the very same double appearing posts happen to me My first often does not appear so I re- write it, only to find both then appear together.Though sometimes neither post appears!

            Weird and of course JA are blameless!
            I know this because Ad PAT TOLD ME SO AND I KNOW HE WOULD NOT LIE. DON’T I!

    3. So Aubameyang now classifies as “not good enough” because of a loss of form that coincided with personal issues? Aside from last season, Auba’s goals literally kept us going.
      Play free flowing football and the goals will come. How many strikers in the league would you want in a position to score ahead of Auba? For me the list is pretty short even with his struggles in front of goal. I agree with most of the othwr things you mentioned. Arteta has to get the players he needs for his system or adapt his tactics to the players at his disposal.

      1. Your post ignores his clear lack of effort for the large part of the season BEFORE SUCH PERSONAL TROUBLES HIT HIM. So your post misleads!

  6. If the Foxes are really interested in Holding there could be the possibility of cash plus player deal for JM.

  7. Whyte>Gabrielle>Mari>Saliba>Holding>Chambers is the pecking order of our central defence.

    Chambers can fill in RB. Holding need to up his game if staying, hoping this is just tactics to add another mil to any offers

  14. The fact that we will have no Europa competition this season, I think we can cut 5 central defenders to 4 and if we qualify for Europa next season we will have 5 again without spending any money when Saliba return. So if we sell one CB and one of Cedric or Bellerin, we can use that money to buy a first choice RB, almost what we are doing now by selling back-up Joe to buy a back-up keeper. I think rightful because the back-up keeper is more important.
    My 2 first choice CB’s are Ben and Gabriel. Holding and Chamber are back-up right side CB’s. Now Holding was real decent so far, he is not the fastest CB in the league, but he is really okay to react in a short distance, putting in excellent blocks in danger areas, not too dome with his feet and also decent to clear balls in the air. But I think Chambers is a better option than Holding, He is tall, strong, can move and is very good with the ball on his feet, in fact so good that he can play at right back or right wing back. Before his injury in Emery time he was a starter and did pretty well, only Arteta who is not really using him as a CB
    Mari is the back for Gabriel, but in my opinion Mari is the worse of them all. I is tall strong and can play with his feet, but he is terrible slow, in the long and short distance. There is no way around this weakness, now if we are playing City or Liverpool and Gabriel is not an available. I will fear to watch that game. I think Chambers played sometimes on the left side in CD in the Emery time, so if Chamber can be the back-up to Gabriel I will sell Mari, otherwise I will be okay to sell Holding, but then we will have to look at Mari in the future.
    So for me the pecking order is Gabriel, Ben, Chambers, Holding and then Mari, Chambers will be first choice replacement in the league because will cover both side in CD.

  15. If Holding can be used as a cash plus player replacement for Madison, Arsenal should go for it. We have enough CBs at present and no European football and anyway, Saliba is coming back next season. The CAM and DM positions need urgent rebuild.

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