Nuno Tavares, who was bought by Arsenal from Benfica for €8m in 2021, was loaned out to Marseille at the beginning of the current season.
He has made 30 appearances for the club, scoring six goals, and is currently Les Phocéens’ second top scorer in Ligue 1, behind former Arsenal forward, Alexis Sanchez.
However, Arsenal have ruled out the possibility of a further loan for the player, and Marseille have categorically rejected the idea of a permanent transfer.
Tavares still has 24 months remaining on his contract with Arsenal, which makes it unlikely that Arsenal will loan him out again.
The Portuguese left-back has 12 matches left at OM, and he hopes to finish the season still in the first team before returning to London.
Former Marseille player Eric Di Meco has criticised Tavares’ performance, stating that the Portuguese left-back has too many defensive problems to be a defender and is not strong enough offensively to be an attacker.
Di Meco added that Tavares has not improved despite having a lot of playing time, and still has the same faults and the same qualities as at the start of the season.
The former Marseille player also noted that when the level of opponent rises a notch against clubs like Paris Saint-Germain, Tottenham or Frankfurt, Tavares disappears.
