What Holding would bring to Newcastle if they beat Leeds to land him

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According to 90Min, Newcastle are confident they are ahead of Leeds in the race to sign Arsenal defender Rob Holding.

They report that the Magpies believe they can complete the signing of the 24-year-old defender.

We’ve looked at what Steve Bruce could expect from Holding and why beating Leeds to his signature could be vital.

He was flying under Emery

Unai Emery seemed to be a fan of Holding during the 2018/19 campaign.

Unfortunately, that season came to an end early for the Englishman, when he suffered a knee ligament injury against Manchester United.

At that time, Holding was proving himself to be an assured, composed Premier League defender.

Newcastle don’t score many goals, which means their defence needs to be watertight.

If Holding can rediscover his 2018 form at Newcastle, he’s going to be a real asset.

One eye on the Euros?

Holding isn’t in the England picture at the moment, but he knows Gareth Southgate well from his time with the Under-21s.

Southgate has shown himself willing to promote those young players he knows well.

If Holding is playing regularly, there’s no reason he couldn’t have his eye on a call-up.

England aren’t exactly blessed with elite central defenders at present.

Tyrone Mings made it into the setup within months of promotion with Villa and Holding is a more refined defender.

With Euro 2021 looming, Holding should have half an eye on the Three Lions.

Big-game player

Holding has played in two FA Cup finals for Arsenal, winning them both 2-1 against Chelsea.

On the big occasion, he’s proved himself capable of keeping elite strikers quiet.

That means he should have no problem coping with the demands of playing for a huge club like Newcastle.