Arsenal Defender Rob Holding : Gunners Don’t Aspire To Be More Like Chelsea’

Arsenal defender Rob holding says the gunners don’t aspire to be more like Chelsea’ rather he suggested Arsenal should look at the reigning European Champions as a ‘competitive rival’, According to the full back.

The defender believes the gap between the two london rivals is as significant as the final 2020-21 Premier League standings might suggest .

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Recall that chelsea bounced back from a sloppy start to the 2020-21 season under frank lampard who was eventually replaced by Thomas Tuchel in January, securing a fourth-place Premier League finish while going all the way in the Champions League to win the blues second UCL tittle.

Arsenal Defender Rob Holding On Chelsea

Comparison In stark contrast, Arsenal ended the premier league down in eighth and dropped out of European competition for the first time in 25 years, but the full back is adamant that the two rival clubs are more closely matched than the final table suggests.

Speaking to the Guardian ahead of the Gunners’ pre-season friendly clash with the Blues on Sunday, ‘”I see Chelsea as a competitive rival for us.

“I do not see them as a team we look up to be like, and I don’t think they see us that way either.

There’s a mutual respect between us and a recent history with FA Cup finals and playing each other in big games.

“I don’t think that, because they won the Champions League, we need to be more like Chelsea. Our results and league position need to improve, of course, but when we play each other it’s always competitive.

“We have to be aiming to get back in the Champions League. With no Europe this season we have got no distractions or fixture congestion and can really focus on our Premier League games.

“I think Liverpool did the same a few years ago, and Chelsea did the same when they won the league in Antonio Conte’s first year.

So it can be a blessing in disguise in some aspects. “We’ve just got to think of it that way and hit the ground running.”