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Arsenal are on the verge of reaching an agreement to sign Lille winger Nicolas Pépé for €80 million (£72 million).
That is according to The BBC who report that a deal between the twoi clubs is close, although Arsenal have yet to agree personal terms with the player’s reprsentatives.
The news comes as a surprise given that Arsenal have been linked all summer with a move for Crystal Palace wide man Wilfried Zaha, whilst Pépé was thought to be likley to join either Napoli or Bayern Munich.
The size of the fee involved may also raise eyebrows, given Arsenal’ s widely reported limited transfer budget but Lille are prepared to accept the fee in instalments over a five year period which makes him more affordable now.
Pépé can play wide on the right, cutting in on his left foot, and can also double up as an auxillary striker, having scored 23 goals for Lille last season in all competitions.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.