'I won't sell him': Defender Arsenal sold makes record breaking start at new club, already valued over £59m

Nuno Tavares has managed to get his dwindling career back on track at Lazio after leaving Arsenal in the summer transfer window.

After a poor outing at Nottingham Forest last season, Tavares left Arsenal permanently to join Lazio on an initial loan deal with an obligation to buy for £7.5m if certain conditions are met.

And the 24-year-old has taken to his new club like a fish to water, with Lazio president Claudio Lotito making an incredible claim on his potential transfer value in the future.

Nuno Tavares continues to shine after leaving Arsenal for Lazio

Tavares has been outstanding for his new club and recorded two assists on his Serie A debut for Lazio in the 2-2 draw against AC Milan.

He also racked up assists in subsequent games against Fiorentina and Torino to become the first player in history to get four assists in as many games since Opta began collecting data.

Amid the former Arsenal defender’s fine run of form, Lazio president Lotito was asked if he would sell Tavares in the upcoming transfer window, to which his answer was a resounding no.

He said (quotes via TMW): “Already a capital gain? I won’t sell him even for €70m. We have beaten off a lot of competition from the big clubs for the fullback.”

Lotito also sang Tavares’ praises earlier this season, describing the defender as his best signing of the summer as he snapped him up from Arsenal for a bargain fee.

Tavares’ stats at Lazio

After his debut against Milan, Tavares has made the left-back spot his own and recorded seven assists in Serie A, emerging as the highest assist-provider across Europe’s top five leagues this season.

Arsenal won’t be losing too much sleep as they are well covered at left-back, with Kieran Tierney, Riccardo Calafiori, Jurrien Timber, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Oleksandr Zinchenko all capable of playing in that position.

However, it goes without saying that Lazio nabbed Tavares for a cut-price fee, with the 24-year-old more than justifying his price tag with a series of outstanding performances so far.