3 – Nuno Tavares
Life at Arsenal isn’t necessarily over for Tavares, but the recent signing of Oleksandr Zinchenko is the biggest indication yet that Arteta is not 100% satisfied.
Following his arrival last season for just £7.2m, the 22-year-old has failed to hit the ground running as Kieran Tierney’s understudy and the writing is now on the wall.
Sadly his 2021/22 campaign will be remembered for all the wrong reasons, including a first-half substitution against Nottingham Forest during Arsenal’s FA Cup third round exit.
At one stage Brighton were in the race for Tavares’ signature but it appears Atalanta are in the most advanced negotiations with some obstacles still to overcome.
According to reports, Atalanta are keen to include a buy option in the contract but Arsenal are reluctant considering the reason for the loan as more of a chance for the Portuguese to get regular game time.
That’s not going to happen much at the Emirates Stadium with Tierney and Zinchenko likely to fight it out for the first choice spot at left-back throughout the season.
Tavares still has a contract until 2025 so a loan spell away for a year will do him good and give Arteta and Edu a chance to review with the hope of his market value only increasing with seasons audition in Italy’s top league.