Gabriel Paulista’s joined Valencia (Picture: Getty)

Arsenal have confirmed defender Gabriel Paulista has completed a £10m transfer to La Liga giants Valencia.

The Sao Paulo-born centre-back was out of favour at the Emirates and has slipped further down the pecking order since Rob Holding’s move to the club.

The Brazilian joined the Gunners in a £15million deal from Villarreal in 2015 but failed to tie down a regular first-team spot.

Arsenal confirmed in a brief statement today that Paulista had left the club to join Valencia and thanked him for his service.

‘The Sao Paulo-born defender made a total of 64 appearances for us, following his arrival from Villarreal in January 2015, ‘ a statement read.

‘For many supporters, his finest performance in an Arsenal shirt came in last season’s Emirates FA Cup semi-final win over Manchester City, when his aerial dominance and tough tackling helped put us on our way to the final.

‘We would like to thank Gabriel for his contribution to the club and to wish him well for his return to La Liga with Valencia.’

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