Fabrizio Romano has claimed that Arsenal defender Nuno Tavares has just completed his Marseille medical ahead of his loan move.
The 22-year-old will leave the Emirates Stadium for the entirety of the 2022-23 campaign, and will ply his trade in Ligue 1.
Romano, writing on Twitter, also confirmed Marseille – who will be in the Champions League next season – will cover his salary.
And crucially for Arsenal fans, he said there is no buy option clause included – it’s a straight loan.
There had been reports claiming that Atalanta were confident of sealing a loan deal for Tavares.
And it seems that those differences were irreconcilable.
Hence a switch to Marseille, who seem happy with a straight loan.
Medical just completed in Marseille, so Nuno Tavares’ set to become new OM player on loan from Arsenal until June 2023. ✅🔵 #OM
OM will cover his salary and there’s no buy option clause included.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 29, 2022
Arsenal signed Tavares from Benfica last season for a reported £8million.
However, he struggled in his maiden campaign at Arsenal, looking defensively vulnerable at times.
The most notable example was when he came off during the first-half of their FA Cup defeat to Nottingham Forest.
With Oleksandr Zinchenko now an Arsenal player, Tavares has likely slipped down the pecking order.
However, the lack of option to buy suggests Arteta still sees a future for the full-back at the Emirates.
Marseille proved a superb place for William Saliba to develop his game last season.