Arsenal loanee makes encouraging injury return but assists dry up

Arsenal loanee Nuno Tavares has reclaimed his spot in the Lazio team following his hamstring injury, though his early run of assists has dried up.

Nuno Tavares made his fourth consecutive Serie A start on Saturday, against Atalanta, an encouraging sign following his recent absence with a hamstring injury.

Arsenal have seen plenty of recent loans derailed by an untimely injury, but Tavares has returned to the Lazio side as if he’s never been away.

On the other hand, after providing eight assists in the first eight games of his loan, Tavares has now gone two months without adding another.

Part of that is due to the fixtures Lazio have been playing. Of their last four league matches, three have been against teams in the top three of the table.

You’re unlikely to rack up as many assists against Napoli, Inter Milan, and Atalanta as Genoa, Empoli, and Como, with all due respect.

But Tavares will want to get back to setting up goals soon, as he currently remains Serie A’s top assist provider. Eventually one of the chasing pack will catch up with him.

Tavares’ loan deal includes an obligation to buy for €9m (£7.6m) assuming the player meets certain clauses in his contract – most likely appearance clauses.

The player will be on a deal until June 2029 if he signs, and the contract also has a sell-on clause reportedly worth more than 25% of a future fee.

So far, all the signs point towards Tavares making his move permanent and raising his value for that potential future sale.