The Portugese defender Nuno Tavares was one of our youngsters that went out on loan this summer, and Mikel Arteta brought in Oleks Zinchenko to replace him as backup to Kieran Tierney. I personally thought it was a great idea to send him to Marseille to aid his development and maturity, which he seemed to be lacking last season after a promising start.
It was noted on All Or Nothing that Tavares wasn’t very happy because he wasn’t playing, and now the player himself has revealed that he was hoping to have an option to stay at Marseille beyond just one season loan.
He said in an interview with RMC in France that only Arsenal refused to add an option to buy, against the wishes of Marseille, Tavares and his agent. He said: “At Arsenal, I do not know if it was a problem of competition with Kieran Tierney,”
“And for me, that’s not even the point. I came to Marseille to finally be able to play in my position.
“By signing with OM, I wanted to have an option to buy, but Arsenal refused. With my agents, we always wanted this purchase option, but not Arsenal.
“Now I’m at OM, and with or without an option, I’m happy.
“At Arsenal, I would have probably only played in the cup [FA Cup and EFL Cup]. I came to Marseille to play in my position, in the Champions League, in the league and in the cup [competition]. Marseille gave me this opportunity.”
That seems a shame to me as it doesn’t sound like he wants to come back, but we have to admit that he seems to be thriving at Marseille. He has been extremely attack minded and has already scored three goals in Ligue 1, so, if nothing else, we should be able to sell him at a good price next summer if he refuses to return to Arsenal….
C’est la vie!
——————————
CALLING ALL ARSENAL FANS! Anyone who would like to contribute an Article or Video opinion piece on JustArsenal, please contact us through this link…
Arteta talks about Man United hopes, midfielder injuries and the chase for Douglas Luiz.
Please enjoy, watch and subscribe to JustArsenalVids