Nicolas Pepe has yet to show why Arsenal paid £72m to sign him from French club Lille.
The Ivory Coast international arrived back in 2019 and has gone on to make 66 appearances in all competitions, scoring 14 goals and laying on 13 assists.
Just eight of those goals have come in the Premier League, though, along with six assists and one has to think that the fee paid for him looks ever more ridiculous as the season progresses.
Pepe did score in the 3-1 win over Southampton but that was only his third goal of the season, and it came in just his fifth start under Mikel Arteta in 2020/21.
It’s fair to say that he has divided those close to the club, too, and Robert Pires, a legitimate Gunners legend, has now stuck the boot in, insisting that Pepe simply isn’t cut out for life in the Premier League.
Quoted by The Sun, he said: “His game doesn’t suit the intensity and demands of the Premier League.
“Pepe wasn’t used to it and it has been complicated for him to change his mentality, to adapt to a new way of training and to settle in a tough league.
“I think he is simply not cut out for English football.”
GIVEMESPORT’S Harry Sherlock says…
It’s difficult to argue with Pires here.
Pepe has struggled to make any sort of impact in the Premier League.
Per WhoScored, this season, he has averaged 1.2 shots per game in the Premier League, just 0.2 key passes and a mere one dribble.
He has 1.8 unsuccessful touches per game and averages just 14.4 passes per game.
He’s not very good. That Arsenal paid £72m for him will be a stain on the club’s record that will need some rubbing away.