Arsenal told transfer of 27-year-old has been ‘huge disappointment’, unlike £76m Chelsea man

Follow us on Google Discover

Tony Cascarino has claimed that Nicolas Pepe’s transfer to Arsenal has been a ‘huge disappointment’, unlike Chelsea star, Kai Havertz.

In 2019, Arsenal put £72 million on the table for Pepe (Sky Sports) – it’s still a club-record transfer for the north London club.

Pepe features in the Premier League’s most expensive transfers, alongside Chelsea’s Champions League winner, Havertz, who moved to Stamford Bridge for £76 million in 2020 from Bayer Leverkusen, as reported by Sky Sports.

With Arsenal looking to bulk up their forward line this summer, Gabriel Jesus has been tipped to join, alongside Leeds United winger, Raphinha – that just signals the end for Pepe.

Former Chelsea striker Cascarino shared his thoughts on the 27-year-old’s reign at Arsenal, as he compared it to that of Chelsea’s Havertz, as he told talkSPORT.

“Nicolas Pepe, what a huge disappointment he has been,” said Cascarino. “I really like Kai Havertz. He has done very well than most of the (Premier League’s) record signings. He has done okay. Then there is the view there is more to come from him.

“I would like to say that about Pepe, but there isn’t. I think he’s 27. Nicolas Pepe is 27 and Arsenal invested £72 million in him.”

SAKA HAS SHOWED PEPE HOW IT’S DONE

At the time of Pepe’s signing, Unai Emery was in the Emirates dugout and Arsenal were trying to fix their issues by spending in the transfer market.

Someone like Saka was still a fresh-faced teenager making his way through as a left-back, before being used further forward as he became a more regular member of the side.

Last season alone, the 20-year-old scored 11 Premier League goals for his boyhood club, just six short of what Pepe has managed during the time he has been at the club.

What Saka is producing out on that right channel is what Arsenal fans would have expected their club-record transfer to showcase.

But, when Pepe does eventually head for the exit door, not only will he go down as one of Arsenal’s worst-ever signings, but one of the worst signings in Premier League history.