27 July 2023 , 11:18
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Rob Holding seems to have taken aim at someone on Instagram after an error against Barcelona, with many suggesting the target is Arsenal's fanbase.
The Gunners took on the LaLiga giants at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles and ran out 5-3 winners, despite falling behind twice during the game. Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring, before Bukayo Saka drew Arsenal level with a neat finish.
Saka went from hero to zero soon after when he scuffed a penalty wide of the upright. Things got worse for the Gunners in the minutes that followed when Raphinha caught Aaron Ramsdale napping and restored Barcelona's lead before the interval.
Early on in the second half Kai Havertz netted his second goal for Arsenal on this pre-season tour of the U.S, diverting Martin Odegaard's header into the bottom corner after finding himself in plenty of space inside the Barcelona penalty area.
Leandro Trossard then seriously turned the game in Arsenal's favour by netting a stellar brace to make it 4-2 to the Gunners. However, it wasn't destined to be a comfortable night's work for Mikel Arteta's men. Holding was only introduced with five minutes left to play but still made a key error that allowed Ousmane Dembele to find Ferran Torres and make it 4-3 to set up a nervy finish.
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Fabio Vieira curled home a stunner to ease the fear and guide Arsenal to victory, but while it may have spared Holding's blushes in terms of the result, fans online were quick to blast the much-maligned Gunners defender.
Rob Holding's Instagram story after his error against Barcelona
Mikel Arteta's side ran out 5-3 winners in the endMirror Football is now on Threads! You can follow us here.
Holding took to Instagram after the game, uploading a black screen on his story, simply captioning it "Nice one". Many have interpreted the message as some kind of dig at those criticising him for his error in the friendly.
The defender suffered at the back end of last season, with fans and pundits alike suggesting that his place in the starting line-up due to William Saliba's injury cost the Gunners their first league title since 2004.
Despite this, Holding was actually the subject of a transfer bid earlier on in the window from Turkish side Besiktas, who are reported to have offered £2million for his services. It was a bid that was swiftly rejected by Arsenal, who are holding out for more before they approved his departure.
The arrival of £38m defender Jurrien Timber has only seen Holding fall further down the pecking order at the Emirates. His mistake during his short cameo would have done very little to convince Arteta he should be considering the former Bolton ace for more first-team minutes next season.