Former Arsenal left-back, Nigel Winterburn reckons Nuno Tavares doesn’t know how to play the full-back role.
The Portugal Under-21 star was signed in the summer to provide backup to Kieran Tierney when the Scotsman is unavailable.
During his first long spell in the first team late last year, Tavares did well, but in his recent appearances for the club, he has simply been terrible.
That forced Mikel Arteta to play Granit Xhaka as his preferred left-back in the club’s defeat against Brighton, even though Tavares was available to play.
Winterburn believes the fundamental problem that Tavares has at the moment is that he doesn’t understand the full-back role and because of that, he cannot play it well.
He tells Mirror Football: “I just don’t think he fully understands the complete role of a full-back and I think there’s a lot more he needs to learn defensively in terms of the situations he puts himself in.
“He needs to learn that side of the game very quickly and get back to the form going forward that he showed earlier in the season.
“The problem is when you’ve had a couple of games like the ones he’s had, then your confidence just drops so quickly.
“You can also lose the trust of the supporters, so it makes it difficult to come back when that happens.”
Just Arsenal Opinion
Tavares needs to get his act together soon before the club signs another left-back.
He is still very young, but Arsenal is rebuilding and there is no time to wait for anyone to possibly improve. We need players that will make an instant impact at the club.
He might get another chance before this season ends. Hopefully, he will take it.