Ex-Arsenal ace praised for performances at European Club following two assists on debut

Former Arsenal left-back Nuno Tavares has been praised for his great performances since departing North London.

The summer transfer window slammed shut last Friday and Arsenal have made a flurry of important additions as they aim to win their first Premier League title since the invincible 2003/04 campaign under Arsene Wenger.

Arsenal signed Bologna’s Riccardo Calafiori following his outstanding Euro 2024 performances and also Real Sociedad midfielder Mikel Merino, who played a key role for La Roja during their European Championship victory.

On deadline day, Arsenal signed Chelsea’s Raheem Sterling on loan with the former Manchester City and Liverpool winger moving to Mikel Arteta’s side on a temporary deal.

However, incomings were not the only business that Arsenal have conducted this summer with outgoings also playing a key role.

Nuno Tavares praised for Lazio performances

Following unsuccessful loan spells at Nottingham Forest and French side Marseille, Portuguese left-back Nuno Tavares completed a move to Lazio.

Lazio announced the signing of Arsenal defender Tavares on an initial loan deal, with an obligation to buy back in July.

The Portuguese left-back initially joined Lazio on loan, but the deal will be made permanent for a fee in the region of £6.5m at the end of this current season.

Since his move to Rome, Tavares has performed very well for Lazio and provided two assists during the weekend’s Serie A draw against AC Milan.

Gazzetta dello Sport have written about the 24-year-old’s great start, stating that the ‘music has changed’ at the club when it comes to the left-back position.

The piece goes on to compare Tavares to club icons like Aleksandar Kolarov and Senad Lulic, who played the left-back role for many years.

Tavares set for fresh start in Italy

During Tavares’ time in North London, the Portuguese defender was criticised for his suspect defensive performances at times for Arsenal.

The nadir of the Portuguese defender’s time for Arsenal came when he was substituted after just 34 minutes during the defeat to Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup back in January of 2022.

“I just did it to try to improve the performance of the team,” said the Spaniard when speaking to The Mirror.

When asked if he’d considered the story the substitution would create, Arteta replied: “I understand that but I have to make the decision to try to improve the performance of the team when it’s not going in any other direction.”

At Lazio, Tavares has a chance to prove himself and make a name for himself in one of Europe’s major leagues.