He joined the Gunners in 2019 for the then club-record fee of £72 from Lille, but left Arsenal in 2023 with a label ‘flop’.Nicolas Pepe, now 29, is without a club and believes that nothing but a price tag prevented him from leaving a more significant trace at the Emirates.The Ivory Coast international admits he struggled to handle that.”It wasn’t easy at all. And the fans weren’t happy with how I was performing,” he told BBC Sport.”When I first joined, the fans weren’t really judging my performances. They were judging the price tag. But I think I did some great things while at Arsenal. I don’t regret my time there.”But my transfer fee to the club was the highest one they’d signed, so they expected me to score in each match.”Nicolas Pepe was a better player than Anthony and Sancho.pic.twitter.com/15FWRedhcQ— Gooner Eurychus 🇰🇪⚽ (@Gooner_Eurychus) July 24, 2024 Pepe’s last game for Arsenal came in 2022. He still managed 24 goals and 15 assists in 91 matches during his first two seasons in English football, which he believes shows that he is only labelled a ‘flop’ because of the mentioned fee.”If Arsenal bought me for £20m, maybe it’d be different,” he said.Despite everything that happened and the failure to make a statement on the pitch, Pepe still respects manager Mikel Arteta.”I have always had a great relationship with Arteta. It’s just that he didn’t have full confidence in me, which is a shame.”He put together a winning team, and sadly, I wasn’t in that player turnover. But he’s someone I respect, and I know he respects me too. And I wish him all the best.”##NAJAVA_MECA_8228490##Pepe hopes that he will soon be able to deliver news about his next club and isn’t ruling out a return to English football.”I definitely learnt a lot,” he said. “Yes, of course, I’m the same player. I’m just getting older, which is normal, but I’m still the same player,” concluded the Ivorian.
