Nuno Tavares praised after brilliant Serie A debut for Lazio vs AC Milan

Arsenal offloaded Nuno Tavares to Lazio earlier this summer following an unsuccessful loan stint with Nottingham Forest last season.

The 24-year-old left-back joined the Serie A outfit on a season-long loan with an obligation to buy and he has already made a huge impact.

The Portuguese was an unused substitute in the first two Serie A games for Lazio, but he made his full debut against AC Milan last weekend.

The Benfica graduate stood out for the Italian club with two assists in a 2-2 draw and he has now been praised by Gazzetta dello Sport.

The Italian outlet say that ‘the music has changed’ at Lazio with regards to the left-back position.

They go on to praise Tavares, considering it is the first time that a left-back has provided two assists for Lazio in the same game since 2018.

Tavares is being compared to former icons in Aleksandar Kolarov and Senad Lulic. The latter made 371 appearances at left-back for Lazio.

The 6ft star has been defensively vulnerable in his career, but Gazzetta expect him to shine in the final third, replicating Kolarov and Lulic.

Lazio presently have an obligation to buy Tavares, but the clause is reportedly conditional based on his performances in the ongoing season.

Tavares has made an ideal start to the proceedings at the Rome outfit and Arsenal will be hoping that he can stay consistent over the campaign.

Lazio will have to purchase him for £7.6 million if some undefined conditions are met. Arsenal could also benefit in future due to a sell-on clause.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com