Arsenal have reportedly placed a €40 million price tag on Nuno Tavares, with Atalanta interested in the 22-year-old left-back.
According to Tutto Atalanta, Arsenal are demanding €40 million for Nuno Tavares after Atalanta showed an interest in signing the Portuguese left-back. The move may be to ward off suitors and price out any potential clubs seeking to sign him, particularly the Serie A giants.
Nuno Tavares came under scrutiny for some of his performances last season. Signed from Benfica for a small figure of over €7 million, the Portuguese defender has proven he has the talent. A few error-prone displays may have come to cost Arsenal a few points in the table, but he did rake in plenty of minutes during the campaign.
However, in the short term, Arteta may need to send him out on loan to gain valuable experience. This could lead to a similar strategy Arsenal took with William Saliba, which helped him gain tremendous experience with a top club in France.
With Atalanta showing an interest in the 22-year-old, the Gunners are forced to think about the possibility of sending the left-back to Italy. Recent reports claimed that the Serie A giants are looking to sign him on loan with an option to buy Tavares next summer. But Arsenal are reportedly keen only sending Tavares out on a dry loan.
Arsenal have set an asking price of €40m for Nuno Tavares as Serie A side Atalanta target the young left-back.
(Source: @TuttoAtalanta) pic.twitter.com/3YKB9t7rAj
— GunnerStuff (@GunnerStuff) June 18, 2022
If the pressure increases, Arsenal could consider a permanent transfer, but suitors will have to pay a huge price. That is because the north Londoners have slapped a €40 million price tag on the left-back amid Atalanta’s interest in the 22-year-old.
That price tag may be high for Atalanta, forcing them to look away from a transfer. The Serie A outfit may have been looking to do deals with clubs by taking their players on loan and offering a reasonable price to make the deal permanent next year.
Atalanta have previously done similar deals for Cristian Romero and Merih Demiral, both with Juventus, and are looking to attempt something similar with Arsenal. Mikel Arteta values Tavares’s contribution to the team after plenty of promise this past season.
The north Londoners are already looking at alternatives in the market. Aaron Hickey, Federico Dimarco and Oleksandr Zinchenko have all emerged on Arsenal’s radar. Lisandro Martinez is the latest player to be linked with a move, with Arsenal leading the race to sign the Ajax defender. Arteta could look at the possibilities and consider selling Tavares if their price tag is met.
It’s highly unlikely Atalanta could be willing to pay up €40 million and could now seek to negotiate a dry loan with Arsenal. The latter could be possible if it means the 22-year-old left-back gets valuable game time next season at the highest level.
