"Mikel Arteta is not telling him to go and do that" - Tim Sherwood slams 26-year-old Arsenal star for his performance against Tottenham
Tim Sherwood has slammed Arsenal defender Rob Holding for his performance against Tottenham Hotspur in the North London derby.
The 26-year-old was sent off as Arsenal lost the Premier League match-up 3-0, resulting in Spurs leapfrogging them in the race for the fourth spot.
Former Spurs manager Tim Sherwood has slammed Holding for letting his manager down.
Sherwood has also claimed that Mikel Arteta cannot be blamed for Holding making such a poor mistake and costing his side the game. He said, as quoted by Sky Sports:
“If you look, the ball was over the top, the ball was going out of play anyway he doesn’t even have to make it."
4 - Rob Holding made four fouls against Spurs leading up to his dismissal, with all four of them coming on Son Heung-min. His four fouls are the most he has ever made in a Premier League game, despite only playing 33 minutes. Unrestrained. https://t.co/d8ksuoqslf
"He’s giving his team an uphill task there. You can’t say it’s down to the manager.”
Sherwood has insisted that Holding needs to be smarter as the manager cannot tell him everything.
The 53-year-old has also suggested that the charged derby atmosphere might have made the defender lose his cool. He added:
“Mikel Arteta is not telling him to go and do that. He might be telling him to get tight, But he needs to be clever, he needs to be more streetwise."
"I think the atmosphere took over his mind there and he’s not thinking clearly when he’s making decisions like that, elbowing him when they’re 1-0 down.”
Can Arsenal still clinch the final Champions League spot?
After their loss against Spurs, Arsenal now have an uphill task to finish in the top-four this season.
It has been an interesting top-four race this campaign with a host of clubs involved. However, at the moment, the race for the final spot is between Spurs and Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta's side trail their local rivals by two points and have a game in hand. They take on Newcastle United on Monday night and Everton on the final matchday.
Rob Holding's red card vs. Tottenham is Arsenal's 13th under Mikel Arteta in the Premier League 😬 https://t.co/J1W1YZ7jmW
Spurs, on the other hand, will take on Norwich City in their final game of the season.
If the Gunners win both their games, they are certain to have Champions League football next season.
So, it can be said that the North London giants have their fate in their own hands but they also have to deal with an enormous amount of pressure.
With the loss against Spurs, they have made their job a lot harder and now have to be at their absolute best to win the last two games.