Marseille Set To Sign Arsenal Defender Nuno Tavares On Loan

Marseille are set to complete a loan move for Nuno Tavares, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The French club have reached an agreement for the signing the Arsenal left-back on loan, with no option to buy included.

Tavares looked set to be going to Atalanta but negotiations with the Italian club collapsed.

Atalanta reportedly looked to add an option to buy into the deal, something Arsenal were not willing to accept.

Marseille reopened talks after previously backing off, and now will likely complete the loan deal.

Arsenal will be hoping Tavares can gain a lot of experience on loan.

The signing of Oleksandr Zinchenko has added quality cover at left-back and Tavares' opportunities would likely be limited, should he stay.

Tavares arrived from Benfica last season and enjoyed a first season of ups and downs.

The left-back started brilliantly, but struggled mid-season and towards the end.

The Portuguese defender can be prone to lapses in judgement, which can affect his defensive ability.

Going forward, Tavares can be electric but sometimes makes the wrong decision.

Physically impressive, he can often be seen taking on multiple players successfully, but these passages more often than not result in a wild shot that flies over the bar.

If the defender can gain a better understanding of the situations he often finds himself in, he can become a very good player.

Arsenal have developed a good relationship with Marseille in recent years.

The French giants took both William Saliba and Matteo Guendouzi on loan last season, making Guendouzi permanently at the end.

They also hope to sign Saliba this summer but that is looking increasingly unlikely, as the defender features in Mikel Arteta's plans.

Marseille and Arsenal will both be hoping the loan of Tavares can be just as successful.

Arsenal are looking to shift a number of players this summer, Bernd Leno and now Tavares seemingly the closest to leaving.