Arsenal told to pay €80m for transfer target

Arsenal will have to break their transfer record to sign Nicolas Pepe after Lille slapped a €80million (£72m) price tag on the Ivorian attacker.

The Gunners have long been linked with a move for the prolific winger, who has netted 12 goals and laid on five assists in Ligue 1 this season – only Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe has had a hand in more goals.

Although a transfer fee of around £40 million had been mooted, Lille bigwig Luis Campos insists it could take closer to twice that figure.

Speaking about Nicolas Pepe to Telefoot on Sunday, Luis Campos set his value for the wing wizard: ‘€80million. But [any club] will also have to convince the player.’ French newspaper L’Equipe recently claimed that Lille were open to selling Pepe in the January window, with Arsenal in pole position to prise him away.

But Campos’ valuation suggests the club will do everything possible to retain the 23-year-old’s services whose stellar performances have guided Lille to second place in the Ligue 1 table.

Unai Emery is understood to be a big fan of Nicolas Pepe, having played against him when in charge of Ligue 1 champions, while he is searching for attacking reinforcements following Danny Welbeck’s season-ending injury.

Comments

Arsenal midfielder Ozil in doubt for Blackpool

Mesut Özil is in doubt for Arsenal's FA Cup third-round tie with Blackpool on Sunday. The German has not played since being substituted at half-time in the Boxing Day draw with Brighton. He has been sidelined with a knee injury ever since, missing out on matches against Liverpool and Fulham. And Emery has hinted he could spend another week on the sidelines to recover. When asked if Oil would be involved against the League One outfit, the Spaniard told reporters at London Colney: "This morning, he didn't train.

London club keen on signing £45m-rated France international

Arsenal desperate to sign PSG midfielder Adrien Rabiot and set to battle with Chelsea, Barcelona and Liverpool for the player. Gunners have problems in the midfield as Aaron Ramsey preparing to change the working place and his replacement is necessary. France international is the best option in this situation as he started this season excellently and proved his greatness one more time. Unai will do everything to add him during this winter transfer window. Blues, Blaugrana and Reds also keen to sign him and there will be a real battle for the footballer. His price could increase and become much more. Rabiot is a product of the Parisians youth academy and spent his current career with them. He is one of the best midfielders in Ligue 1 and unchanged figure for the club. In this campaign, Adrien already played 20 matches, scored 2 goals and made 2 assists in all competition. This is an impressive result and he can improve his consequences during th...

Emery admits Arsenal’s top four chances are over if they lose to Chelsea

Arsenal manager Unai Emery has admitted that his sides chances of finishing in the top four will be all but over if they lose to Chelsea at the Emirates tonight. The Gunners excellent 22 game unbeaten run now seems a long time ago, with the North London outfit taking just seven points from their last seven Premier League fixtures. Emery’s side are currently fifth in the table, six points behind fourth placed Chelsea. Speaking to the press ahed of tonights crunch clash Emery was asked about the possibility of Chelsea opening up a nine point gap between the sides and whether it would effectively end Arsenal’s chances of making the top four, to which he replied: “I think yes.’’ Emery told a pre-match press conference. “We had a big challenge against West Ham. And the reason is because we spoke about playing under pressure, which we have to do if we are to be competitive, and take this opportunity. It is a big ambition of ours to do that. “After our los...

Arsenal

Search This Blog