Forgotten £72million Arsenal flop set to be unemployed as fans convinced he could make Premier League return
FORGOTTEN Arsenal flop Nicolas Pepe will become a free agent next month with the £72million dud set to leave Turkish side Trabzonspor.
Pepe, 28, only joined the Super Lig outfit in September after a loan spell with French side Nice.
The winger made just 13 appearances for Trabzonspor, scoring four goals in all competitions.
And Fabrizio Romano claims Pepe will not be offered a new contract after failing to impress.
The Ivory Coast international is now weighing up his options amid offers from the Middle East.
However, Pepe hopes to continue playing in Europe and is waiting to explore his options.
But despite struggling at Arsenal, some fans reckon Pepe is destined to return to the Premier League.
One said: “Nottingham Forest all over it.”
Another declared: “Pepe was such a promising talent before joining Arsenal.
“From there I don’t know what happened to him.”
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One added: “Free Pepe! Where will the redemption arc take him? Premier League return?”
Big things were expected of Pepe when he joined Arsenal in 2019 for a then-club record fee of £72m.
He had scored 37 goals in 80 games at Lille, becoming one of the top players in Ligue 1.
But Pepe managed just eight goals in his first season at Arsenal before following it up with 16 strikes in his second term.
His third season yielded just three goals from 23 appearances.
And Pepe was axed by Mikel Arteta with a loan move to Nice before Arsenal released him from his contract a year early in September.
However, with his Trabzonspor move failing to work out, Pepe will now be anxiously waiting to see if there are any more takers in Europe.
Nicolas Pepe's career stats
Those numbers in full:
- Poitiers, 2012-2013: 9 games, 2 goals
- Angers, 2013-2017: 47 games, 3 goals
- Orleans (loan), 2015-2016: 32 games, 8 goals
- Lille, 2017-2019: 80 games, 37 goals
- Arsenal, 2019-2022: 112 games, 27 goals
- Nice (loan), 2022-2023: 28 games, 8 goals
- Trabzonspor, 2023-2024: 13 games, 4 goals
- Ivory Coast, 2016-2024: 45 games, 10 goals
- Trophies: FA Cup (Arsenal); Afcon (Ivory Coast)