Atletico Madrid will have to plough through this first half of the season before signing a replacement for out-of-contract 32-year-old Filipe Luis.
The Brazilian native is out of contract at the end of the season, and failure to pick up a replacement at the turn of the year, they could run down in healthy play.
Nicolas Tagliafico is spot on to be signed by the Spanish giants in January from Eredivisie outfit Ajax.
The 26-year-old has stamped his name in the spotlight, given his defensive record in the Dutch outfit.
His well pillared as a strong wall in the backfield of Ajax, with enough plussed advantage as a passer.
Tagliafico has a pass completion rate of 86.1 per cent across all competitions for Ajax, since being shipped from Independiente earlier this year.
North London club Arsenal lodged an 8 million pounds bid for the 26-year-old at the end of October according to the Sun, after they suffered a heavy jam in their line of defence, taking severe hits from injury knocks to duo Nacho Monreal and Saed Kolasinac.
This has run down the Gunners defensive condition, and despite showing a strong squad, the fitting in of Granit Xhaka, who has difficulty tracking back and is easily walloped by faster attackers, puts them at a risk of crumbling that unbeaten streak.
With Atletico now in the fray, Arsenal have a fierce competitor for Tagliafico’s services, and fans fear they could be easily beaten to the chase.