Porto have announced the transfer of Fabio Vieira to Arsenal on a deal worth £38million.
An initial fee of £34m will be paid with a further £4m in add-ons to come. The 22-year-old was one of the standout players in Portugal last season, bagging a combined seven goals while registering a very impressive 15 assists, 14 of which came in the league - that was more than any other player.
A statement from the Portuguese club said: "Futebol Clube do Porto - Futebol, SAD, under the terms of article 248 n1 of the Securities Code, hereby informs the market that it has reached an agreement with Arsenal FC for the assignment, on a definitive basis, of the sports registration rights of professional football player Fabio Vieira for 40M (forty million euros), of which 5M (five million euros) are dependent on the achievement of sporting objectives.
"It is further informed that the final agreement is still being finalized and is expected to be implemented in the next few days. The Board of Directors."
It’s no secret that Mikel Arteta has been eager to add reinforcements to his attack in this up-and-coming window, and his side have been linked with a host of names. However, Vieira was considered as one of the club’s more realistic and primary targets, and there’s plenty of evidence to suggest he could have a substantial impact on the North London side’s attack next season.
The Porto youth graduate has still yet to be called up to Portugal's senior side, however he was named player of the tournament at last year’s U21 Euros and is being tipped to make his nation’s world cup squad later this year.
As a profile, what stands out initially about Vieira is his versatility. Last season he played as a centre-forward, in midfield and on the right of his side’s attack. He’s left-footed on paper, though he’s extremely comfortable using both which is why he’s so dangerous across multiple positions.
At just 5ft7, he isn’t the tallest or most imposing of players, however he combats that with excellent technical skill. The 22-year-old is brilliant at evading pressure in tight areas and dribbling the ball away from trouble. He averaged just over four dribbles per 90 last season with over half proving successful.
He’s also got excellent vision and an ability to play a range of piercing through balls or tantalising crosses into the penalty area. His assist record speaks for itself, though he could also boast having the fifth-best Expected Assist (xA) average (0.28 per 90) across the whole division last season.
While this is boosted for the Portuguese player by taking set-pieces, for comparison, both Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli ranked top in this department at Arsenal last season, though their averages were lower at 0.20 per 90.
In terms of the role he’d be expected to play within this Arsenal squad, it’s probably fair based on his skillset to assume that he would bring some cover and even competition for Martin Odegaard.
The Norwegian is the key creator at Arsenal and there isn’t really a similar profile to him currently at the club. The 23-year-old played 33 of the Gunners’ 38 Premier League matches last season. The fixture list is set to intensify next season with the return of European football for Arsenal, so rotation will be key.
Vieira has the potential to come into the side in his place without there being any significant drop in Arsenal’s creative threat, additionally though his all-round versatility means he can cover more than one role for Arteta, making him a very useful asset next season.
