Arsenal are looking to strengthen their attack ahead of next season and have their eyes on a wide man
(Image credit: PA)
Arsenal want to replace out-of-favour winger Nicolas Pepe this summer - with Porto winger Pepe.
The Ivory Coast international has found himself on the fringes of Mikel Arteta's team this season.
He has started just five times in the Premier League, with Arteta preferring Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli in the wide positions.
Pepe has shown flashes of quality since his £72m move to the Emirates Stadium, but he has not lived up to expectations or justified his price tag.
As such, Arsenal are reportedly considering letting him leave at the end of the campaign, with Super Desporte writing that Sevilla are interested in the 26-year-old.
(Image credit: Getty)
Arsenal are looking to bolster their options in attack anyway, and Porto starlet Pepe has caught their eye in recent months.
The Brazilian has stepped up since Luis Diaz departed the Estadio do Dragao for Liverpool in the January transfer window.
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He has scored four goals and provided three assists in the Primeira Liga, helping Porto win the title.
A Bola, a Portuguese outlet, reports that Pepe's impressive performances have attracted the attention of Arsenal.
The winger has four years left on his deal with the Portuguese outfit - but his contract is said to contain a £43m release clause.
(Image credit: PA)
A deal could be dependent on Arsenal finding a buyer for Pepe, although the Gunners know they would not be able to recoup the £72m they paid for him in 2019.
They are not the only club interested in a move for Porto's Pepe, though.
Crystal Palace are also keeping tabs on the former Gremio man, who has been identified as a potential replacement for Wilfried Zaha should the club's talisman depart.
Arsenal's chances of landing players of Pepe's calibre could hinge on whether or not they qualify for the Champions League.
Arteta's side have a four-point lead over Tottenham ahead of Thursday's north London derby.
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Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who's filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha's Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).
