Arsenal U23 boss Steve Bould was pleased with the performances of new signing Pablo Mari and Rob Holding during Monday's 2-1 loss to Chelsea.

Mari made his first appearance for the Gunners since arriving from Flamengo on loan last month, while Holding is returning from injury.

Speaking after the game, Bould said: "It's fabulous for the young players to play alongside them. It's a learning programme and we don't very often get older boys and men playing with us, and that's how I learned my game when I was a kid so it's something we miss out on lots of times. It was actually a very good game for them to come in to.

"I think Chelsea's striker is a good player and they have good players all over the park so it was a good test for them and a good 45 minutes. I'm sure they will go on and use that for first team value."