Arsenal will be forced to admit £34m transfer mistake this summer

Arsenal have a decision to make on Fabio Vieira this summer after a disappointing second season since arriving at the Emirates.

Vieira, 24, is yet to make 50 appearances for the club as the second anniversary of the attacking midfielder’s £34.2m signing from Porto approaches later this month. Injuries have contributed to that, including a groin issue this year that required two surgeries.

An ill-timed red card against Burnley in mid-November further restricted his playing time just before the injury. But when Vieira became available since then, manager Mikel Arteta barely turned to the former Portugal youth international. That lack of action reportedly has his former club Porto considering bringing home their academy graduate this summer.

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portuguese newspaper A ball reports that they have Vieira as a replacement for Francisco Conceicao, who will likely leave the club this summer.

After two on-again, off-again seasons in England, Vieira apparently wants out to play more regularly. But a sticking point may be that Porto are not in a position to pay anything close to the fee they received for Vieira in the summer of 2022.

He would have to be loaned out if Vieira wants to return to the club he first joined as an eight-year-old. Arsenal wouldn’t even remove all of their wages from his books for the season, as they would apparently have to continue paying part of his wages to facilitate any deal.

However, the club has shown itself willing to release players in similar situations in recent seasons. Albert Sambi Kokonga and Kieran Tierney left Arsenal on loan to Luton Town and Real Sociedad last season for a fee and are now likely to move permanently.

It may come down to whether Porto can afford a high enough loan fee and pay enough Vieira wages to make the move worthwhile for Arsenal. Questions about the player’s training performance, according to The Athletic He could also force the club’s hand if there is a deal that suits both parties this summer.