Nicolas Pepe insists he ‘could have been important’ for Premier League leaders Arsenal this season but for Mikel Arteta’s decision to freeze him… the club’s £72m buy considers his future on loan at Nice.
- Nicolas Pepe has provided an update on his future at Arenal following his loan spell at Nice
- The 27-year-old’s loan from Didier Digard does not include an option to buy
- Pepe recently returned from a knee injury that saw him sidelined for six weeks
Nicolas Pepe pondered what his future at Arsenal might look like as his loan spell with Nice draws to a close.
As Mikel Arteta’s transformative side continue their chase for the club’s first Premier League title in nearly two decades, the club’s record signing has played no role after leaving on loan to Ligue 1 in August.
During his return to France, Pepe played 17 Ligue 1 matches, and recently returned from a knee injury that made him miss much of the first part of 2023.
Asked what his future might hold, the 27-year-old said: France Blue: “I am very happy in Nice, there are still two important months for the club. I want to focus on the last two months and the rest, I don’t know. There will be discussions.
Pepe also insisted he “could have been important” during Arsenal’s historic title-chasing campaign, and lamented Arteta’s decision to let him go on loan.
I don’t know what Arsenal want to do. I still have a lot of friends there. I could have been important to this club, but it’s the manager’s choices.
Nicolas Pepe ponders his future at Arsenal as his loan deal with Nice draws to a close
Pepe insisted he “could be important” for Mikel Arteta’s title-chasing side
Pepe arrived in the UAE in 2019 during Unai Emery’s tenure at the club, eclipsing the £72m fee paid for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and making the Ivory Coast international the most expensive signing in the club’s history.
However, despite achieving double figures in his second season in the Premier League with the club, the former Lille star found himself increasingly forced to play a supporting role at the Emirates before leaving on loan without the option to buy.
At Les Aiglons, Pepe showed glimpses of the talent that earned him great respect upon his arrival in North London, and he recently returned to action to help the club defeat Sheriff Tiraspol to reach the quarter-finals of the UEFA Conference League.
Speaking about his time on the sidelines, Pepe explained: “Today I’m back at 100% even if it took me a while to find the rhythm.
Despite the injury, I wanted to stay with the team and go to training, and I always did. With the series we’re doing, we want to finish well. We lost a lot of players to injury at the end of the season so I want to help.
Pepe has made 17 appearances in Ligue 1 Les Aiglons this season, scoring six goals
