Nicolas Pepe to leave Arsenal? Spanish club ‘confident of agreeing a deal’ claims report
The winger, who is the club’s record signing at £72 million, could be set to leave the North London club.
Arsenal winger Nicolas Pepe could be in for a move away from the Emirates Stadium before the end of the transfer window.
90mins are reporting that an unnamed Spanish side are “confident of agreeing a deal” for the Ivorian while there is also interest in the player from clubs in Germany and France.
The 26-year old still has two and a half years remaining on his current deal and it looks likely that any move away from the North London side would be on loan.
If that is the case then he likely wont be the only high profile player leaving Arsenal on loan this window with former captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang expected to join Barcelona - assuming the two clubs can reach an agreement.
Pepe’s indifferent Arsenal form in 2021/22 season
Nicolas Pepe has made just 12 appearances for Arsenal this season, scoring two goals which both came in the Carabao Cup.
The Ivorian hasn’t hit the back of the net in any of his nine Premier League appearances in the 2021/22 season and has only provided one assist.
Those kind of assists are well below what is expected of a player who cost the club £72 million when he signed from French side Lille in 2019.
In the same time frame last season, the Ivorian had scored six goals in all competitions for the Gunners and was a regular part of the starting line-up.
The 26-year old made 47 appearances and scored 16 goals across all competitions for Arsenal last season.
The rumours of a loan move away from the Gunners might not come as a surprise with the player himself likely frustrated at his lack of regular game time since the summer.
Recently, he has been away with the Ivory Coast national side at the Africa Cup of Nations.
The winger featured in all four of his nation’s matches at the tournament, before they were eliminated on penalties by Egypt, and scored twice - hitting the back of the net against Algeria and Sierra Leone in the group stages.
Aubameyang to Barcelona latest
Sky Sports have reported that Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang is already in Barcelona despite the fact that the Catalan club and Arsenal have yet to reach and agreement over the move.
The striker is expected to join the Spanish side on loan and all parties are happy with that move but there is still the small matter of the player’s salary.
Aubameyang is reportedly on a whopping £350,000 per week at Arsenal and Barcelona’s financial difficulties at the moment are well documented.
It is unclear exactly how much the Gunners are expecting the Spanish side to pay but it does seem to be the factor which is holding the deal up.
The 32-year old has not featured for Arsenal since their 2-1 Premier League defeat to Everton on December 6, 2021.
He has played 15 times for the Gunners this season and scored seven goals in all competitions but was stripped of the club captaincy due to protocol breaches.