Newcastle are attempting to sell defensive duo Fabian Schar and Florian Lejeune in order to raise funds for the loan signing of Arsenal defender Rob Holding, a report from The Chronicle has claimed.
The Magpies are reportedly in pole position to secure the signing of the 24-year-old, although it seems the deal has hit something of a stumbling block for the time being.
According to the latest reports, the club have yet to push on in the process of signing Holding since the start of the week, and they may have to sell players in order to afford the services of the Arsenal man.
As a result, it is thought that Schar and Lejeune could both be sold this summer, in order to secure the money needed to bring Holding to St James’ Park.
Since joining Newcastle from Deportivo La Coruna in the summer of 2018, Schar has made 55 appearances in all competitions for the club, scoring six goals.
Lejeune meanwhile, has scored twice in 46 appearances for the Magpies in total, having joined from Eibar three years ago.
As things stand, there are just 12 months remaining on Schar’s current contract with Newcastle, while Lejeune has two years still to run on his deal at St James’ Park.
With something of a surplus in central defence, it does make sense for the Magpies to move these two on, particularly if they are planning on bringing in another centre back in Holding.
You do however wonder just how much they will be able to get for the duo given neither have really established themselves fully at St James’ Park.
Meanwhile, the fact they have got this far in their pursuit of Holding before looking suddenly hitting the brakes on it, giving another club the opportunity to swoop in and secure his signature themselves, is also rather frustrating.