Nuno Tavares

Benfica

Born in Lisbon of Cape Verdean descent, Tavares finished his development with Benfica after three years at city rivals Sporting CP and two stints with Casa Pia. His manager at Casa Pia, João Silva, drove him home from training every day while also allowing his studies to take priority. Tavares made his senior debut with Benfica's reserves in the LigaPro, his first match being a 3–2 home win against Covilhã on 27 October 2018. He played his first official game with the first team on 4 August 2019, featuring 90 minutes in the 5–0 victory over Sporting in the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira at the Estádio Algarve. His Primeira Liga bow took place the following week, opening an eventual 5–0 home defeat of Paços de Ferreira and adding two assists. However, his weaknesses were exposed two weeks later in a 2–0 loss to Porto in O Clássico, which led him to return to the B side and lose his place to Tomás Tavares, being limited to occasional domestic cup matches in place of Alejandro Grimaldo. Following a difficult season, and a video posted on the Instagram account of a friend of Tavares where Grimaldo was referred to in derogatory terms, Benfica decided to sell the player in spite of his public apologies. During his spell at the club, he made 41 competitive appearances.

Arsenal

On 10 July 2021, Tavares joined Arsenal on a long-term contract in a deal worth around £8 million. He made his Premier League debut on 13 August, coming on as a late substitute for…

Tavares won his first cap for Portugal at under-21 level on 10 September 2019, in a 2–0 win in Belarus for the 2021 UEFA European Championship qualifiers. On 7 October 2021, against Liechtenstein in the next edition, he scored the first goal in the 11–0 rout in Vizela. Tavares was included in a provisional squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, but did not make the final cut. Courtesy of his Lazio performances, he made his full debut on 15 November 2024, replacing Nuno Mendes late into the 5–1 home victory over Poland in the UEFA Nations League.

Club

As of match played 17 May 2026

International

As of match played 14 October 2025

Benfica

Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2019