Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta reportedly has no intention of reintegrating Nicolas Pepe back into his first-team squad next season.
The Ivory Coast international has been a major flop at the Emirates Stadium and just spent the season back on loan in Ligue 1 with Nice.
Pepe will now be returning to Arsenal for the summer, but it seems clear that the club’s intention is to find a buyer for him, or even terminate his contract, according to the Telegraph.
Many Arsenal fans will surely be disappointed with how this signing worked out, with Pepe looking a hugely exciting talent a few years ago during his Lille days.
This prompted the Gunners to pay a club-record fee for Pepe at the time, though it’s fair to say he never consistently reproduced that form in the Premier League.
One imagines there might not be too many suitors for the 28-year-old at the moment after his recent lack of form, so it wouldn’t be too surprising if AFC did end up simply terminating his current deal in order to get him off their books.