Fabio Vieira is set to return to Arsenal for pre-season once Porto’s exploits at the Club World Cup come to an end.
The Portuguese playmaker had an indifferent season in the Primeira Liga, scoring four goals and registering four assists in the process.
Now competing at the Club World Cup, Vieira was underwhelming in Porto’s opening game against Palmeiras, struggling to influence the game as it ended 0-0.
Despite this, Porto reportedly want to sign Vieira permanently this summer, but aren’t optimistic that they’ll be able to meet Arsenal’s demands.
Fabio Vieira delivers coy response to Arsenal future question
Arsenal signed Vieira for around £34 million in the summer of 2022.
There was hope that the creative midfielder would provide Martin Odegaard with genuine cover and competition, with a view to him eventually developing into an excellent player in his own right who could potentially hold down the left eight position in Mikel Arteta’s team.
However, Vieira was granted few opportunities by the Spanish manager, and struggled to deal with the physicality of the Premier League on the rare occasion he did find himself on the pitch.
Loaned out to Porto for the duration of the 2024/25 campaign, the 25-year-old impressed at times in his home nation but lacked consistency.
Despite this, the Portuguese giants are eager to acquire Vieira on a permanent basis, but are unlikely to be capable of paying the sort of fee Andrea Berta would want in order to sanction the player’s departure.
Asked about his future in the aftermath of Sunday night’s match in New Jersey by RG, Vieira delivered a coy response.
“Right now is not the ideal time to talk about these issues,” he said.
“I am now representing FC Porto, and I am 100% focused on this competition with my teammates. That is what matters to me, the rest will come later.”
Arsenal should settle on a lower price and sell Fabio Vieira this summer
Vieira was ultimately average for Porto this summer, showing his technical brilliance in glimpses, but ultimately not influencing games as much as you’d hope.
Arsenal are linked with Viktor Gyokeres, who dismantled the Portuguese top flight last season.
However, there are question marks around whether the Swede can translate this form into English football.
If there are question marks around Gyokeres based on what he’s done in a weaker league, Vieira’s cromulent displays in this same division should be met with a lot of scepticism.
It’s clear that the midfielder isn’t going to be good enough for the Premier League or Arsenal, and thus, the Gunners should accept any offer they can get for him this summer.
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