Arsenal are preparing to announce Nicolas Pepe as their record signing after agreeing personal terms with the Lille forward on a five-year contract.
The Premier League club are to pay €80 million plus add-ons for the Ivory Coast international. Once the final details are settled and a medical taken, Arsenal expect to confirm Pepe’s arrival.
Napoli were among other clubs who had hoped to buy the 24-year-old, who is left-footed but prefers to play on the right side of a front three.
Pepe scored 22 goals in the French league last season, second to Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, and provided 11 assists.
Arsenal’s record fee is the €63.7 million paid to buy Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund in January 2018. – Guardian
