Arriving with great fanfare at Arsenal during the summer of 2019, Nicolas Pépé (28 years old) never managed to establish himself in north London. The record holder for the club’s most expensive transfer at that time (80 million euros), who was coming off an excellent season with Lille, disappointed the Gunners season after season. The Ivorian international, after a stint in Nice last season, saw his contract terminated last September, before joining Trabzonspor. Arsenal therefore recovered nothing from the player bought at high price. In total, according to The Telegraph, the player would have cost the London club 100 million pounds sterling (117 million euros), between his transfer and his salary. Which weighed down the club’s accounts.
Last season, the club’s losses totaled more than £52 million (€60.8 million). Of this amount, 18 million pounds sterling (21 million euros) would be due to the drop in the value of Nicolas Pépé. Since then, Arsenal’s finances have been considerably strengthened thanks to qualification for the Champions League (the first since the 2016-2017 season).
