Arsenal close to ‘imminent’ Nuno Tavares transfer from Benfica

Arsenal Looking at Exciting Left-Back in Nuno Tavares

Starting with the checklist, Tavares meets all the requirements Arsenal are after in a left-back this window: he has a huge upside, is young, has room for development and won’t break the bank.

In terms of his style, it’s explosive.

While he wasn’t able to dislodge Alex Grimaldo from the starting lineup last season, on the occasions he did make the team his excellent pace stood out. And for those who didn’t have their eyes hidden behind their hands at that time, the 21-year-old came on for the final five minutes of the Gunners’ 3-2 second leg victory over Benfica in last season’s Europa League.

His marauding runs up and down the pitch are complemented by a delightfully high technical level, that also being boosted by a noticeable self-confidence. Tavares isn’t afraid to touch beyond his man and use pace to his advantage, nor is he woe to the occasional flick and trick to lose his marker.

There is also a distinct whip and pace to his crosses from wide areas that adds even greater tenacity to his play. All in all, he seems like an exciting package. What’s not to like?

Unfortunately, the noises coming out of England and Portugal are chalk and cheese. One need only scour through the replies across social media from Benfica supporters to get an entirely different picture.

An overwhelming happiness from Tavares’ current fanbase, as well as Portuguese journalists questioning Arsenal’s interest, doesn’t bode too well. The overriding emotion is that he can’t defend to save his life and his positioning out of possession requires a great deal of work.

The fact fans are happy to see the back of him also stems from an apparent bad attitude. A lot of the criticism directed Tavares’ way has its roots in a video uploaded with the defender in which some unsavoury comments were made about the first choice left-back, Grimaldo.

Therefore, every side of the debate has to be tempered with personal feelings on the matter.

But, looking positively and as balanced as can be, Tavares is superb attacking outlet with huge upside who needs some coaching doing on his defensive positioning and awareness. That’s manageable.

This deal has picked up pace considerably over the past 24 hours though, and while some of the Portuguese outlets are likely getting ahead of themselves, the left-back’s future should become clearer in the coming days.