ARSENAL are ready to let Nuno Tavares leave on a loan transfer this summer, according to reports.
The Portuguese left-back only joined the Gunners for £8million from Benfica last July.
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But the Athletic claim the 22-year-old may be loaned out to gain more valuable first team experience.
Tavares endured an up-and-down first season with the North London giants.
Although he looked dangerous going forward, defensively he was found out.
Embarrassingly, he was hauled off at half-time in a 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace.
While in the crunch game against Newcastle it was his foul throw that led to the Toon scoring the opener from a Ben White own goal – as the match was delicately poised.
The Athletic says that Arsenal’s hierarchy have discussed sending Tavares out on loan to aid his development.
Meanwhile, the Premier League giants have been linked with a move for Bologna defender Aaron Hickey.
The 19-year-old was said to be close to a £21.25million move to the Emirates last week.
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The left-back position has been identified as one of the areas to improve, especially given Kieran Tierney’s recurring injury issues.
Hickey burst onto the scene in 2019 when he made his Hearts debut at the age of 16.
In September 2020 he signed for Bologna for around £1.5million, despite receiving interest from Bayern Munich.
But Arsenal could face competition for Hickey from Brentford and Man Utd for his signature.
Although, the Mirror reported that manager Mikel Arteta is said to have ‘doubts’ over signing the full-back.