Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has revealed to Football London that Rob Holding barely trained before taking on Manchester United yesterday.
Holding was thrown into Arsenal’s team at Old Trafford, despite only recently returning from injury.
And Arteta admits that he was shocked that the English centre-back was even available to be selected for the game.
“I think he did one session,” Arteta said. “We didn’t expect him to come back so quickly to be fair. Credit to the medical staff and that’s the culture we’re trying to create.
“Rob has this determination and willingness to play at the limit, work hard and put himself on the line. He had a great performance.”
Holding played his part as Arsenal kept a clean sheet and picked up a 1-0 win against United yesterday.
He also seemed to come through the game unscathed physically.
Holding did go down late on to receive some treatment, but that seemed to be for cramp, rather than anything more serious.
Arsenal will now be hoping that Holding can stay fit, as they are suffering with a number of injuries at the back.
The Gunners are without Pablo Mari, Calum Chambers and David Luiz, but Holding’s partnership with Gabriel looked rock solid yesterday.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
