Nottingham Forest sign Arsenal left-back Nuno Tavares on loan: Stats
Arsenal left-back Nuno Tavares has joined Nottingham Forest on a season-long loan deal. Forest will pay slightly more than £1m as a loan fee while the contract has a £12m buy option as well. The Portuguese full-back grew out of favor at the Emirates Stadium and therefore he was loaned out last season to Olympique Marseille. Here we decode his stats.
Why does this story matter?
The Gunners expected Marseille to sign the player permanently but that didn't happen and the 23-year-old returned to North London with a lot of uncertainty. He was not in Mikel Arteta's plans and hence was not included in their preseason tours nor was he on the bench for any of the Premier League games this season. Therefore, his departure was expected.
A look at his career stats
Tavares played for many youth academies in Portugal but his career took off at Benfica. He featured in 19 matches for Benfica B in the second division of Portugal across two seasons. He played 41 matches for Benfica's senior team, scoring once. The left-back joined Arsenal in 2021 and played 28 matches. He featured in 39 matches for Marseille last season on loan.
Breaking down Tavares' numbers in the 2022-23 Ligue 1 season
The youngster featured in 31 Ligue 1 matches last season for Marseille and scored six goals. Tavares created 26 chances. As per Opta, he completed 811 out of 1,025 attempted passes while clocking 79.12% passing accuracy. Out of his 42 attempts (excluding blocks), 17 shots were on target. He completed 56 take-ons, mustered 56 tackles and won 23 aerial and 150 ground duels.
A look at his stats for Arsenal
Tavares joined Arsenal in 2021 for £8m from Benfica. He never really impressed the bosses and played only 28 games for the Gunners. Out of those matches, 22 of them were in the Premier League and he even scored a solitary goal. He played five EFL Cup matches for the North London club while representing Arsenal once in the FA Cup.
Nottingham Forest will bring in more reinforcements
Forest manager Steve Cooper has five targets to land before the transfer window slams shut. Along with Tavares, they have also signed Brazilian defender Murillo from Corinthians for 13.75m. They are keeping tabs on Benfica goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos, who was earlier linked with Manchester United. They are interested in a swap deal for Nicolas Dominguez from Bologna, who needs midfielder Remo Freuler in exchange.
Nottingham Forest finished 16th in the Premier League last season
Forest were close to relegation as they finished 16th in the Premier League. They have started poorly this season with two defeats and a win against Sheffield United after three matches. They have shown promise but lost against Arsenal and Manchester United.
