‘Maybe that got to him’: Sky Sports pundit thinks Rob Holding was sent off because of another Arsenal player

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Sky Sports pundit, Robbie Keane, suggested last night that Arsenal defender Rob Holding might have been worried about Ben White being back.

Holding was sent off in the first half as Arsenal went down 3-0 against Tottenham. The defender’s red card proved a huge turning point in the game and meant the Gunners were never really going to get back into the game. As was picked up on by Sky Sports’ pundits at the game, fellow defender White never came into the game, despite being fit enough to be on the bench.

And while all the talk might have been about White’s lack of involvement, former Spurs and Liverpool striker Keane believes White’s presence might have contributed to Holding’s reckless display.

“Do you think that maybe because of Ben White coming back into the fold, that maybe he was thinking about that. To be fair to him he’s done very well in the last five games. Maybe just with White in the background he’s thinking ‘I need to put a show on here to show the manager’. Maybe that’s just got to him a bit,” Keane said on Sky Sports last night.

Arsenal are down to the bare bones now when it comes to defenders. Gabriel Magalhaes also limped off in the game, meaning Mikel Arteta has some big choices to make in the coming weeks.

TBR’s View: Ben White Adding Pressure To Usually Reliable Rob Holding

Theo Walcott touched on it in the Sky studio as well, but this was so unlike the usually calm and assured Rob Holding.

Arsenal fans have become accustomed to Holding being a steady presence in defence but last night he seemed to suffer a complete head loss. It was ludicrous how he went about his business, and the red card was always coming.

Keane makes a good point about Ben White here and how it might have affected Holding.