England's starting lineups at the Under-21 European Championships have raised plenty of eyebrows in North London over the last few days.
With two young Arsenal centre-backs to choose from, England coach Aidy Boothroyd has opted for Calum Chambers ahead of Rob Holding in both games so far in Poland.
That's a choice that's had Arsenal fans scratching their heads in confusion after Holding became the new darling of the supporters toward the tail end of last season.
It's also a reminder that Chambers could still have the brighter future of the two prospects. At least, it's certainly much too early to write him off.
At Arsenal, Holding has overtaken Chambers as the most promising centre-back of the future in the minds of most fans. And for good reason: his impressive performances as part of Arsene Wenger's newly forged back three helped deliver the FA Cup. Chambers, meanwhile, couldn't prevent Middlesbrough from being relegated despite being a regular starter throughout the campaign after going on loan. In all competitions, Arsenal have won the last 11 games that Holding started. Middlesbrough won one of the last 13 league games that Chambers started.
And yet for England, Chambers has played all 180 minutes in Poland while Holding was confined to the bench for the 0-0 draw against Sweden and 2-1 win over Slovakia. One explanation for that may be that Boothroyd has deployed a classical 4-4-2 system, where Chambers has much more experience than Holding at a top level.
While both centre-backs started Arsenal's opening game of the season last August, a 4-3 defeat to Liverpool, Chambers was then shipped to Boro and became a mainstay in Aitor Karanka's back four, making 24 league starts. Holding, after playing two more games during a defensive crisis for the Gunners, didn't make another league start until Wenger's formation switch in April.
But it would be unfair to Chambers to put it all down to Boothroyd's formation. The 22-year-old remains a talent who could yet live up to the transfer fee Wenger paid for him back in 2014 -- reportedly worth up to £16 million -- when he joined from Southampton.
Before Shkodran Mustafi's arrival last summer, Chambers was the most expensive defender Wenger had ever bought -- a fact that has perhaps helped shape the perception of him as a disappointment after failing to lock down a regular role with the Gunners in three years. Holding, in contrast, already looks like a massive bargain after joining from Bolton for around £3 million last summer.
The question is what should Arsenal do with Chambers for next season? As far as numbers go, they're already stocked with centre-backs if Gabriel Paulista stays at the club and Per Mertesacker is fit to play regularly again. Even if Wenger sticks with a back three, keeping six central defenders in the squad seems unlikely, especially with no Champions League football on the schedule.
Another loan could be likely, and Chambers shouldn't have a shortage of suitors. He has developed well at Middlesbrough, and another year of regular football would only do him good.
But as his recent starts for England's U21s have shown, they shouldn't consider a sale. Arsenal haven't had an all-English centre-back pairing since the days of Tony Adams and Martin Keown. In a couple of years, Chambers and Holding could yet deliver another one.