Arsenal centre-back Rob Holding “will be allowed to leave” once Lille defender Gabriel Magalhaes has sealed his move to the Emirates, according to the Daily Mail.

If the Brazilian does sign on the dotted line, head coach Mikel Arteta will have no less than eight centre-halves in the first team squad, including William Saliba, David Luiz, Sokratis, Shkodran Mustafi, Pablo Mari and Calum Chambers.

With that being the case, it is expected that at least three to four will be allowed to depart, including Holding. Newcastle and Leeds United are the two favourites to sign the 24-year-old.

At the moment, it is thought that both teams would only consider signing the player on loan, but that may suit Arsenal who may want to see how the defender performs over a whole campaign.

Holding’s game time with the Gunners has been curtailed by fitness problems, having missed the best part of nine months with an anterior cruciate ligament injury. He was, however, fit for the majority of last season.