Arsenal have confirmed the arrival of left-back Nuno Tavares from Benfica, with the fee believed to be around 8 million pounds.
Head coach Mikel Arteta has been keen to strengthen his options on the left side of the defense after Kieran Tierney’s injured tormented first two seasons with the Gunners, and Tavare’s arrival gives the Spaniard another natural alternative.
Since joining Celtic in 2019, Tierney has endured several spells on the pages – forcing Arteta to mix up his package and distribute Granit Xhaka, and sometimes Bukayo Saka, out of position to fill the void.
The Swiss international performed admirably in the role, but with a transition to Roma threatening, Arteta has gone fast to get a capable reinforcement.
Talks have been going on between Benfica and Arsenal for a number of weeks, and the club have now gone to their official website to confirm the arrival of Tavares on a long-term deal.
Welcome to Arsenal, Nuno Tavares? pic.twitter.com/379qyLXrxG
– Arsenal (@Arsenal) July 10, 2021
“Nuno Tavares has joined us from Benfica on a long-term contract,” Arsenal’s statement began. “The 21-year-old defender developed through the Benfica youth system and made his Benfica B debut in October 2018 before moving on to the first team. He made his first team debut in the Portuguese Super Cup victory against Sporting Lisbon in August 2019.”
Arteta also took the opportunity to welcome Tavares and expressed his joy at securing the signing of a player he considers to have “great promise”.
“We welcome Nuno to the club,” said the Spaniard. “He is a young player with great promise who has developed very well with Benfica in recent seasons and has also shown his quality by being part of Portugal in the 21st century.
“Nuno’s arrival will give the squad extra strength and options in defense, especially with this energy on the left side of the pitch. We look forward to Nuno’s arrival soon, his integration into the Arsenal family and playing in front of our fantastic supporters.”
The Portuguese U21 national team player recently approved medicine in Lisbon, although the confirmation of his signing was delayed as he was forced to endure a period of isolation after arriving in London.
There has been no official confirmation of the length of Tavare’s contract, but it has been widely reported that he signed a four-year deal with the possibility of another fifth. Similarly, the club has not yet released any information about the fee they have paid Benfica – but it is clear that the figure will be around 8 million euros (6.8 million euros) with 2 million euros (1.7 million euros) in addition .
