Arsenal to FINALLY complete transfer every Gooner has been waiting for
Robin Bairner
- 24 Aug 2023 08:15 BST
- 3 min read
Nicolas Pepe’s unhappy Arsenal stay is set to draw to an end imminently, with two Saudi Pro League clubs positioning themselves to sign the Ivory Coast international winger.
Pepe has long been on the transfer market but has had no takers in Europe due to his outsized wages compared to recent performances.
L’Equipe reports that Saudi Pro League side Al-Fateh, however, are ready to take a player who is under contract until 2024 off the hands of Mikel Arteta’s side after the 28-year-old rejected the opportunity to join Turkish outfit Besiktas. There is also another unnamed club from the big-spending league interested in the player.
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Pepe joined Arsenal in 2019 with high expectations. He was made the club’s record signing at €80 million - a figure since broken by Declan Rice – but he failed to replicate the form that he showed at Lille, despite a 2020/21 season in which he bagged 10 Premier League goals.
He was ultimately shunted out to Nice in Ligue 1 last season but once again struggled with poor form and injury issues, with his tally of six goals in 19 games rather masking what was a disappointing campaign for the Paris-born star.
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Pepe set for Saudi Pro League
Pepe is now set to depart for the Saudi Pro League, with French reports stating that two clubs have “concretely positioned” themselves for the player.
The two Saudi outfits boast the type of spending power that mean matching his Arsenal wages should be little problem, making them a more attractive proposition than Besiktas might have been.
Pepe would be the latest significant recruit for the Saudi Pro League, which has seen a string of stars complete transfers to various clubs since Cristiano Ronaldo joined Al-Nassr following his release from Manchester United, though Karim Benzema is notably having issues at Al-Ittihad.
