09 September 2023 , 10:50
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Nicolas Pepe has finally secured his Arsenal exit after what was an underwhelming spell for the one-time record signing.
The Gunners captured the Ivorian back in 2019 for £72m after he'd been hugely impressive with Lille. Liverpool were among those keen but it was the north Londoners who stumped up the cash to land the highly thought of winger, but he never regularly delivered.
Pepe produced the odd moment of magic but he's previously been loaned out and Arsenal were desperate to get him off their books, eventually taking a massive loss as he moved to Turkish side Trabzonspor for nothing.
It wasn't his Gunners teammates who aired their frustration with him, instead his colleagues with the Ivory Coast. Pepe has picked up 37 caps for his country, scoring on 10 occasions, but the likes of Wilfried Zaha and Salomon Kalou did their best to avoid him.
When on international duty both players roomed with the 28-year-old, but his snoring proved too much and both men pleaded to get a swap.
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Zaha told the OnTheJudy podcast in 2021: "Oh my days. Nicolas Pepe. Nicolas Pepe, I asked to leave the room. I went and asked to leave the room because he sounded like a motorbike. It was mad. Bro, it was crazy. I was like no, I can't. They let me move and share rooms with Kalou, Salomon Kalou. And he was like, 'Bro, I know. I moved myself'".
Nicolas Pepe has finally secured an Arsenal exit (Getty Images)Pepe's next teammates in the Turkish SuperLig will hope that isn't still the case as they look to challenge the country's established sides. Only two seasons ago they were champions and have added the former Arsenal man to aid their chance of another title.
"I came here to become a champion and achieve success," said the Ivorian, who will team up with the likes of Trezeguet, formerly of Aston Villa. His Arsenal deal, worth £150,000-a-week, had one year left to run, but it was canned by the player and the club.
Last term Pepe headed out on loan to Nice but was unable to recapture the form he showed previously in Ligue 1. Arsenal's attacking options are settled and there didn't appear a route back into the starting XI with Mikel Arteta keen to offload him. The 28-year-old leaves Arsenal having made 112 appearances, scoring 27 times, winning the FA Cup in 2020.