Arsenal have just over a week to compete any last minute deals in the summer transfer window, and Edu could grant Mikel Arteta a considerable windfall
Arsenal have been handed a major boost to their hopes of recuperating a substantial fee for Nuno Tavares. The 23-year-old defender faces an increasingly uncertain future at the Emirates Stadium this summer, with Mikel Arteta eager to trim down his ‘unsustainably’ bloated squad.
According to the Mirror, Nottingham Forest will accelerate their pursuit of Tavares this week. The report states that discussions are advancing but the type of deal – whether it’s loan or permanent – is yet to be decided.
The former Portugal Under-21 international, who sees his contract with Arsenal expire in 2025, featured 31 times for Marseille in Ligue 1 last season, scoring six goals. While Tavares enjoyed his season-long loan spell in the French top-flight, he often operated as a left wing-back – a polar-opposite role to what Arteta demands from Oleksandr Zinchenko.
The Mirror add that Forest would be willing to pay the Gunners £30million for the Portuguese star’s signature if another loan can not be arranged. It’s said that Tavares has also attracted interest from Werder Bremen and Wolfsburg in Germany this summer, but he would prefer to stay in the English top-flight.
Arsenal signed the left-back from Benfica in 2021 but, after failing to impress Arteta in a back-four, he was sent out on loan to Marseille. With Tavares seemingly surplus to requirements in north London, he could be one of several players who are sold before the end of the month.
Last month, the Gunners boss described his 30-man first-team squad as ‘unsustainable’. At the time, Arteta’s roster consisted of Matt Turner, Alex Runarsson, Cedric Soares, Kieran Tierney, Albert Sambi Lokonga, Mohamed Elneny, Marquinhos, Folarin Balogun and, of course, Tavares.
Since then, only Turner has left on a permanent deal while Runarsson and Marquinhos have found loan moves. The Spaniard said: “We have 30 players here which is unsustainable, and obviously the market is still open.
“Things can happen – but we are prepared. We are really happy with the squad we have at the moment; we obviously have improvements to make in terms of what we want to do in games, and we have to do that. Overall, I’m really pleased with the team.”
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