10 young players to watch

2. Rob Holding, center-back, Arsenal

Arsenal’s late-season resurgence to win the FA Cup owed as much to Rob Holdng’s development as any tactical tweaks. Sure, Wenger switching the Gunners to a back three helped, but the ploy worked thanks to Holding’s assured displays.

Signed from Bolton last summer for £2 million, Holding went from playing in the Championship basement to bossing Chelsea at Wembley. The 21-year-old proved a force in the air and stable on the deck.

Holding’s performances meant Arsenal kept their new back-three shape despite injuries and suspensions to Shkodran Mustafi, Laurent Koscielny and Gabriel.

Those three remain senior figures, as do converted full-back Nacho Monreal and 32-year-old Per Mertesacker. Emerging from this level of competition will be tough, but ex-Gunners defender Martin Keown told Arsenal Player, via Metro‘s Mark Brus, how the youngster can keep his place:

"He needs to keep himself right, have a break of a couple of weeks but no longer, because he’s fighting for his place. That’s the way he’s got to look at it. Possession is nine tenths of the law and that’s the way he needs to look at it, like ‘I’m in the team and I’m going to stay in the team’. He’ll want that assurance. The manager needs to show belief in him."

If Holding stays ahead of the more established names at his position, Arsenal will have a budding star at the back.