Rob Holding has come a long way since his time as a youngster at Wanderers.

The centre-back has racked up more than 160 appearances for Arsenal and was part of the side that pushed Manchester City for the title last season, ultimately coming up just short.

Holding recalled how Wanderers helped him go from a “skinny kid" to an established Premier League name.

“When I was at Bolton, just before breaking into the first team, I was quite skinny and I had to build a bit of muscle and power,” the defender told Jaxxon Podcast.

“We started doing Olympic power lifting when I was 17 or 18 in the youth system. That really helped me and gave me that power.”

He added: “It was all about building power from your base really. It was a mutual thing between myself and the strength and conditioning coach at the time, a lad called Jack Fahey.

“I wanted to do more exciting weights instead of just sitting under a squad rack all the time.

“It was nice to get a full-body workout and when you hear the bar jingle, you feel like you are getting that power.”

Holding spent 12 years in Wanderers’ youth ranks and had broken into the first-team picture when Arsenal came calling.

The Bolton News: Holding was part of the Arsenal squad that pushed Manchester City for the title last seasonHolding was part of the Arsenal squad that pushed Manchester City for the title last season (Image: PA)

“I started when I was five, playing for a local team,” he added. “I went all the way through the ages.

“12 years of my life, three nights a week driving to Bolton, which was about an hour drive from where I lived in Manchester.

“When I got to 16 and you start begin an apprentice, you start seeing the first team and it is sort of in reach.

“That is when I thought, ‘I can maybe do this professionally’. I made it through and played for the first team for six months. That summer, Arsenal came in.”

Holding has shared the dressing room with some big names during his time in North London but says two defenders, in particular, had a big impact on him

“Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny. When they were together at Arsenal, they were phenomenal,” he smiled.

“Mertesacker won the World Cup with Germany, an absolute leader. Every time he spoke, everyone listened and everyone was quiet.

“He was strict but he did it in a good way. We had fine lists for if you were on your phone when you shouldn’t and things like that.

“There was a time when I had a phone call from my agent. There was no-one in the changing room and I answered it quickly.

“The next thing you know, he walked round the corner and said, ‘£500 tomorrow’. To be fair, he let me off because he likes me and he knew I never did anything like that.”