Fabrizio Romano has revealed how negotiations played out between Arsenal and Benfica, as the Gunners close in on completing the signing of Nuno Tavares.

What's the latest transfer news on Tavares?

It was revealed on Wednesday afternoon that the north London club had agreed a deal in the region of £8.5m with the Portuguese outfit to sign Tavares.

Arsenal have also reached an agreement with the player himself over personal terms, meaning that the left-back now only needs to complete his medical at the Emirates to finalise the move.

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What did Romano say about the imminent transfer of Tavares?

Speaking on The Here We Go Podcast, Romano explained how the negotiation process unfolded between the two clubs. He stated that it was actually Benfica who showed interest in an Arsenal player initially.

Romano said: "This deal started when Benfica asked about Guendouzi from Arsenal. They were planning for a deal with Nuno Tavares included as left-back, the back-up option for Tierney, who extended his contract and is the starter.

"And they were talking for Guendouzi, then the player said he prefers to go to Marseille, and Arsenal decided to go also without Guendouzi in the negotiation for Nuno Tavares."

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What were Tavares' stats in 2020/21?

The 21-year-old largely had to bide his time in 2020/21 as he was restricted to just 14 appearances in Portugal's top division, of which only seven were starts.

However, he did get his first taste of a major European competition when he featured five times in the Europa League. This included playing against Arsenal in the last 32 stage, as he came on as a late substitute at the Emirates in the second leg.

What can Tavares offer Arsenal next season?

As Romano mentioned, Kieran Tierney is Arsenal's first-choice left-back right now, and that is unlikely to change heading into the 2021/22 season.

However, the Scot's injury history is far from ideal, and this was a problem at times this year. The 24-year-old missed 11 league matches due to fitness concerns during the campaign, and thanks to a lack of cover in this position, this forced Mikel Arteta to reshuffle his pack on numerous occasions.

Granit Xhaka played at left-back in five matches towards the end of the season, while Bukayo Saka was also asked to fill in for Tierney at times. Neither are natural full-backs, and it was a case of putting square pegs in round holes for Arteta.

By bringing in Tavares, Arsenal will have a like-for-like replacement for Tierney, meaning that Arteta should not have to make drastic changes to his line-up if his preferred full-back picks up more knocks next term.