Arsenal left-back Nuno Tavares has revealed that he wanted the option to leave the club permanently as he sealed a loan move to Marseille.
The Portuguese defender joined the Ligue 1 giants on a season-long deal after a tricky debut season at the Emirates Stadium. He has enjoyed a bright start to life at the Orange Velodrome having been named in the starting XI for five out of the club’s six opening games of the season.
Tavares has also got a taste for goals during his brief time in France so far having netted three goals already - the most recent coming in a 3-0 cruise against OGC Nice.
Despite being only set to remain with Marseille until the conclusion of the current campaign, the 22-year-old has suggested that he instead wanted the option of a permanent move included in the agreement to take him to the club but Arsenal refused.
Speaking with French outlet RMC Sport, he said: “At Arsenal, I do not know if it was a problem of competition with Kieran Tierney, but for me, that's not even the point.
“I came to Marseille to finally be able to play in my position. When signing with OM, I wanted to have an option to buy, but Arsenal refused. With my agents, we always wanted this purchase option, but Arsenal didn't.
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“Now I'm at OM, and with or without an option, I'm happy. At Arsenal, I would have probably only played in the cup.
“I came to Marseille to play in my position, in the Champions League, in the league and in the cup [competition]. Marseille gave me this opportunity.”
Tavares of course joined Arsenal from Benfica last term to provide competition for regular first-choice Kieran Tierney. The former Celtic star’s ongoing injury woes saw Tavares thrust into first-team action sooner than Mikel Arteta intended.
He made 28 appearances in all competitions throughout the campaign but endured some forgettable displays - most notably the FA Cup horror show against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.
Tavares’ current contract in north London will still have three years left to run once he returns to the Emirates Stadium but appears likely to remain down the pecking order. Arteta of course still has Tierney to call upon, whilst summer signing Oleksandr Zinchenko is more than capable of deputising in the position having arrived from Manchester City in the summer.
The Ukrainian has thus far made three appearances for the Gunners since his switch, all of his recent outings seeing him named in the backline. He has missed the last two matches - wins over Fulham and Aston Villa - due to a knee injury.
