Danny Welbeck backs Arsenal youngster Rob Holding to continue fine form against Chelsea

Danny Welbeck is backing Arsenal team-mate Rob Holding to bring his impressive recent form to the FA Cup Final against Chelsea, so long as he puts the importance of the occasion to one side.

The 21-year-old has been a mainstay of Arsenal’s defence since Arsene Wenger switched to a back three in mid-April, missing just two of the Gunners’ final nine games of the season.

His performance against Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final won him particular praise as he kept Sergio Aguero largely under control, notably leaving the Argentine striker on his feet after one dribble in the extra time victory.

Holding is likely to be pressed into action once more on Saturday as Arsenal battle a crisis of numbers in defence. Laurent Koscielny (suspension) and Gabriel (medial knee ligament damage) are certain to miss out whilst Shkodran Mustafi is struggling to overcome the illness that ruled him out of Sunday’s 3-1 win over Everton.

​Welbeck believes the experience of shining at Wembley in the FA Cup semi-final will serve Holding well against the likes of Eden Hazard and Diego Costa but he urged the youngster not to get carried away on the biggest day of his career so far.

“He played really well that day,” Welbeck said of Holding’s performance in the semi-final. “So he’s had the experience of going there, the stadium, the atmosphere. That experience is invaluable.

“To go to such stadiums, to play in these big occasions, it’s something you’ve dreamt of as a little kid. But I think it’s really important to play the game and not the occasion.”

Holding was far from the only player to excel in the 2-1 extra-time win over Manchester City, a game which stands as Arsenal’s most impressive of 2017 so far, though admittedly the competition for that honour is rather limited.

However with their substandard record against their top six rivals often used as a stick with which to beat Arsenal the Gunners took particular pride for overturning their deficit at the hands of Sergio Aguero, Nacho Monreal and Alexis Sanchez scoring to secure a return to Wembley for Wenger’s men.

“We took a lot of confidence from that game. It was a difficult match coming up against great opponents. The way they played that day it would have been hard for any team to progress to the final.

“But we did that and now we’re here we’ve got something really exciting to look forward to. We’ve got the confidence behind us and it’s something where we want to take the trophy home.”