Arsenal have their first signing. He has brought in competition for Kieran Tierney from Portugal

Arsenal unveiled their first summer signing on Saturday. Nuno Tavares, a young left back, will move to London from Benfica Lisbon in Portugal. He cost the Canaries eight million euros.

Nuno Tavares is a Sporting Lisbon offspring, but has been playing for rival Benfica Lisbon since he was 15.

He has represented Portugal in every possible selection, but is still waiting for his debut in the A-team.

Last season, Tavares started to play quite regularly, logging 1300 minutes for Benfica’s ‘A’ team, during which he scored two assists. His chances came mainly in the cup and Europa League.

Although the 21-year-old defender was far from being a stable member of the starting line-up, Arsenal reached for him. Benfica paid a handsome eight million euros for him.

The transfer can also be understood by Arsenal, who were looking for a backup for Kieran Tierney. Mikel Arteta obviously doesn’t count on Sead Kolašinac and he doesn’t have another left-back in the team, which proved to be a big problem last year.

And Tavares’ strengths and weaknesses? He excels in speed, ball handling and accurate centres, plus he can play on the wing. On the other hand, he still has some work to do at the back, especially his defensive technique is not ideal according to experts.

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