Arsenal expert Charles Watts believes the club will look for a permanent solution to Fabio Vieira’s future next summer when he returns from his loan.
According toCharles Watts on Caught Offside, Fabio Vieira may not have a future at Arsenal as the club could look to sell the Portuguese midfielder. Mikel Arteta allowed the £34 million midfielder to leave the Emirates on loan to his former side, FC Porto, which was not a good enough indication in the first place.
Fabio Vieira arrived at Arsenal more than two summers ago with plenty of promise, as the Gunners decided to pay a £34 million fee for the midfielder. He did start well for the Gunners and proved he has what it takes to thrive under Mikel Arteta.
However, a few injuries and a loss in form had seen his game time reduced last season, which may have forced Arteta into a decision on the midfielder. Arsenal chose to send him back to his old club, FC Porto, on a loan deal butdid not include a buy option in that contract.
That factor alone has kept the hopes of resurrecting his career at the Emirates alive, althoughArsenal will make a decision in 2025. He has been hitting good form of late, but that alone cannot be a factor in Arteta determining if Vieira fits into his plans for the future.
Arsenal expert Charles Watts believes the time might be up for Vieira at Arsenal and that the club might consider a permanent solution for the Portuguese midfielder. Watts did insist there was still a chance for Vieira to continue at the Gunners, although, as Arteta did a while ago, he too pointed at the emergence of Ethan Nwaneri as the big reason why Vieira might have to leave.
Watts said,“I don’t think it is an absolute certainty that his Arsenal career is finished. The fact that the club did not insert any sort of buy option in his loan move suggests that they have not totally washed their hands of him.
“But I would be surprised at this point if he comes back and makes the grade in north London. I still think the most likely option is that he moves on permanently come the end of the season.”
“Mikel Arteta admitted that Vieira was allowed to leave so that Ethan Nwaneri could get more minutes this season and Nwaneri has already shown how good he can be, despite still only being 17.”
“So Vieira would find himself being Nwaneri in the pecking order next season should he still be around and I can’t imagine he would be too happy with that given his need for game time.”
“It just feels like an exit is inevitable and that Arsenal will have to take a fairly big financial hit on a player they spent £34 million on back in 2022.”
Ethan Nwaneri’s impact on Fabio Vieira’s future
Arteta was recently asked about Vieira and Nwaneri, with the Gunners boss suggesting the latter’s development was one of the main reasons why the club decided to let the former leave. The teenager has been sensational for the Gunners this season and recently notched his first Premier League in the win over Nottingham Forest.
Nwaneri is being touted as a future sup[erstar at Arsenal, withthe teenager now set to sign a new deal at the club. Should that happen, it will all but end Vieira’s prospects of succeeding in north London as Arsenal would be investigating the market for opportunities to sell the £34 million midfielder.