Following the successful loan of William Saliba at Marseille, Arsenal decided the same could happen with Nuno Tavares.
That’s why, when the Ligue 1 side came knocking for the left-back, Mikel Arteta was more than happy to let him go, especially since he had already secured a deal for Oleksandr Zinchenko.
To date, the deals have worked out for both sides, as Tavares has played a fair bit for Marseille, scoring aplenty in the process, while the Ukrainian, when fit, has impressed.
Arsenal will be monitoring their player’s progress with a lot of attention in hope that he comes back a better player, and his manager, Igor Tudor, reckons the potential is there for the Gunners man to be among the best down the line.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of this weekend’s game against AC Ajaccio, the Croatian manager said, relayed by Jeunes Footeux: “Tavares is a good guy. A bit timid off the pitch. He’s quick, he’s solid. He still needs to improve things, like his final ball, or make better choices. If he can do that, he’ll be one of the best in the world in his role.”
The 22-year-old was used quite a lot by Arteta last season at Arsenal due to injuries elsewhere in the squad, but it was decided that a move elsewhere would be better for his development.
It’s working out so far, and Tavares will be hoping to eventually return to the Emirates to add to his 28 appearances in a Gunners shirt to date, for whom he has scored one goal and assisted another two.
