Arsenal interest in £20m full-back hints at Nuno future

Transfer business at Arsenal has been heavily centred around who they could bring in to bolster their attacking numbers in the summer, which has taken the limelight away from other positions.

Midfield is one area that is being looked at too, as even if Granit Xhaka does stay it’s highly likely that Mohamed Elneny departs when his contract expires in June. Ainsley Maitland-Niles is another player who looks set to leave permanently, and depth will be required in European competition.

Matt Turner will join to replace the outgoing Bernd Leno and in front of them there could be further incomings and outgoings across the defence.

There are no certainties over William Saliba’s future although indications are that he will (finally) be part of the first team squad and provide valuable competition in the heart of defence, with full-back the other area to look into.

Arsenal are interested in signing £20m full-back Aaron Hickey from Bologna in the summer transfer window – but does that mean outgoings?

However, there are two for each position already. Cedric has two years left on his deal and isn’t keen on leaving, while Nuno Tavares was brought in just last summer to cover for Kieran Tierney.

All of which makes interest in Aaron Hickey most interesting.

Reported across Italian media and since picked up by football.london, the Scottish full-back is enjoying his finest season to date over at Bologna, who he joined in September 2020 for a fee in the region of £1.5m.

Making 11 appearances in his first season in Serie A, the 19-year-old has since cemented his place in the starting lineup his term, turning out 33 times in the league and netting five goals in the process.

Predominantly operating at left-back, Hickey has also featured at left wing-back, right-back, and right wing-back this season. The reasons for that are due to his incredible two-footedness, actually using his opposite foot more than former Bologna alumni Takehiro Tomiyasu.

Arsenal’s right-back uses his right foot 68% of the time, compared to Hickey using his left 61% of the time (FBref). Such versatility, which includes him being able to play in midfield which his former manager at Hearts, Craig Levein, predicted he will eventually move into, is part of the reason behind the Gunners’ interest. Newcastle are also said to be monitoring his progress.

Quick in recovery and strong defending his own box, he’s also demonstrated neat shooting technique – something Nuno could only dream of – and there is plenty of room for growth and development in a more structured system at Arsenal.

Fabrizio Romano states that the fee sitting at around £15m-£20m which, if it’s something Arsenal are keen on, hints at potential outgoings in defence.

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Nuno Tavares Could be Set for Loan Move Next Season

Across the Gunners’ four full-back options, if there is one that there is a preference to move on, it’s Cedric.

The Portuguese defender is now 30 years old (31 in August), on considerably higher wages than Nuno, for example, and has very much reached his potential. As one of the previous regime’s signings, he is a nod to the past, not the future.

Try telling him that, though.

Cedric knows he hit the jackpot when Arsenal signed him from Southampton back in January 2020, an initial loan move that turned into a permanent four-year deal that summer. Reports of him not eyeing a move away are unsurprising. He’s not stupid. This is a contract he won’t get anywhere else.

So does interest in an exciting young and versatile talent like Hickey hint towards a situation with Nuno instead?

He’s such a frustrating player. The spell he had earlier in the season where his rawness and natural ball carrying ability were a devastatingly effective addition to the starting lineup has fizzled away. Sloppy in possession, defensively unaware and positionally weak, all of his more worrying traits are coming to the fore. He instills fear instead of sparking excitement – although he does still offer the latter on occasion.

It’s evident that the materials are in his possession to be a competent left-back. He is gifted in certain areas. Yet the tactical weaknesses of his clearly require more coaching than initially anticipated.

Therefore, it could be that Arsenal will look to loan him out for next season, or perhaps even sell him. As established as Kieran Tierney is, his injury record is increasingly concerning as he now misses a third of the season almost by default, and the summer arrival may not be trusted as much to deputise. Nuno’s deficiencies could hint towards another player coming in to allow him playing time elsewhere, either temporarily or otherwise.

But then it would also be seen as throwing in the towel on a player who the club spent £7m on in the not too distant past. And, with the £20m fee Bologna are keen on (which seems high for someone out of contract in 2024), it’s resources distributed in areas of less pressing need.

One to look out for, though, certainly.