Arsenal want £22m to sell Nuno Tavares after West Ham United transfer development
Arsenal are in talks with Nottingham Forest over a deal for West Ham-linked defender Nuno Tavares, according to the Evening Standard.
The newspaper reported online (16 August) that the Gunners want at least £22million for the former Benfica star after their £8million purchase of the 23-year-old in 2021.
West Ham and Turkish side Galatasaray have previously shown interest in Tavares, who spent last season on loan to Ligue 1 side Marseille.
Too late
While West Ham may have been interested in the Portugal youth star, they may have other priorities at this point in the window than negotiating for Navares.
Nottingham Forest look to continue spending this summer following deals for Manchester United’s Anthony Elanga and Newcastle’s Chris Wood, but £22million could be a little excessive for a player who has so far failed to prove himself regularly in the Premier League.
Elsewhere, West Ham are battling to keep another star midfielder this summer with Lucas Paqueta getting closer and closer to a move to Manchester City.
Cover at left-back may not be a terrible idea for the Hammers. With just the out-of-favour Ben Johnson, the ageing Aaron Cresswell and Emerson as natural to that position, a younger option could be worth a go.
Tavares also bests West Ham’s most recent starting left-back Emerson in most metrics. With 3.64 progressive carries per 90 (92nd percentile), 3.21 touches in the attacking penalty area (95th percentile) and 0.13 non-penalty goals per 90 (90th percentile) [FBRef], Tavares could be a very interesting option for David Moyes.
However, it could be too late for the Hammers if they wanted a deal while their busy end to the window continues.
In other West Ham news, Tim Sherwood was baffled by a “strange” Hammers transfer story.