Nottingham Forest could welcome a new face to the City Ground this summer, with a new target revealed this week as one that could bolster Steve Cooper’s side.
The Welshman will be hoping for a more assured season in the Premier League than their return campaign last year, which saw them confirm survival on the penultimate day against Arsenal.
Last term’s joy against the Gunners was not transferable in the opening fixture of the 2023/24 calendar, as Forest began the season with a 2-1 defeat at the Emirates.
However, the Tricky Trees could get one back on the north Londoners, with reports linking one of Mikel Arteta’s talents to the club.
Who could Nottingham Forest sign this summer?
The Reds have recruited well so far this window, capturing the signatures of four talents addressing all areas of the pitch coming in the form of Anthony Elanga, Chris Wood, Ola Aina and most recently Matt Turner.
The former Arsenal shot-stopper made his debut against his former club on Saturday in what was an impressive piece of business by the Midlands side, in their bid to replace Keylor Navas, who returned to Paris Saint-Germain at the expiration of his loan.
Now, Cooper has been tipped to delve back into business with the Gunners, with Fabrizio Romano revealing that Forest have opened negotiations with the club over left-back Nuno Tavares.
Taking to social media, Romano said:
“Nottingham Forest submit formal proposal to sign Arsenal left-back Nuno Tavares on permanent deal. Forest trying top signing as new fullback as negotiations are still ongoing also on player side.”
A previous report from football.london, meanwhile, suggested a price tag for the 23-year-old whiz could be in the region of £10m, with him having two years remaining on his contract at the Emirates.
What is Nuno Tavares’ playing style?
Having once been lauded as a “superb talent” by scout Jacek Kulig, Tavares was snatched from Benfica back in 2021, when Arsenal signed him at just 21.
Identified by Arteta at the time as having the ability to bring “energy on the left side”, the full-back has excelled since making the move to the English giants, however his best performances have come away from north London.
Last season, the Portuguese ace spent the campaign on loan in France with Marseille, becoming a regular for the Ligue 1 outfit and flexing his ability as an attacking full-back.
The dynamic defender netted six goals for Marseille in the league, exerting himself as a favourable attacking outlet from the left side of the defence, making him a particularly exciting acquisition for Cooper to target.
His performances last term saw him likened statistically by FBref to Chelsea full-back Reece James, who has been praised as a “very high level” player in the position by former boss Thomas Tuchel.
A superb outlet progressively, the Arsenal defender ranked within the top 3% of full-backs in Europe’s top five leagues for his one-versus-one strengths, averaging 2.12 successful take-ons per 90 over the past year, via FBref.
The Lisbon-born ace’s numbers in Ligue 1 display his similarities to James, with the two showcasing innate ability in both defensive and offensive duties.
Tavares averaged 2.18 tackles per 90 to the Englishman’s 2.24, as well as making an average of 1.80 passes into the penalty area to the Blues skipper’s 1.74 per 90 in last season’s Premier League.
Cooper could capture his own version of the highly-rated full-back this summer by acquiring Tavares, who would undoubtedly bolster Forest’s efforts in both attack and defence.
