Arsène Wenger has jumped to the defence of Hector Bellerín, insisting his under-fire defender does not warrant the level of abuse directed at him by his own Arsenal supporters.

Bellerín will face Middlesbrough on Monday despite visiting fans turning on the Spanish defender in the 3-0 defeat at Crystal Palace a week ago.

The right-back’s form has nosedived this year. Once billed as the league’s finest in his position, ­Bellerín’s slump has mirrored ­Arsenal’s decline.

In truth, it could have been any player targeted by the travelling Gunners support in the wake of the fourth successive defeat on their travels.

But Wenger has no intention of taking Bellerín, 22, out of the firing line even though he has looked a shadow of himself since returning in December from a five-week lay-off cause by an ankle injury.