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maltatoday | SUNDAY • 28 JULY 2019
SPORTS
FOOTBALL
Nicolas Pepe Arsenal agree
£72m deal for Lille winger
ARSENAL have reached an agree-
ment with French club Lille to sign
Ivory Coast winger Nicolas Pepe in a
deal worth 80m euros (£72m).
The Gunners will pay for the
24-year-old via a series of instal-
ments that suit their restricted
budget for this summer.
An agreement between Arsenal
and Pepe's representatives still needs
to be finalised.
But the transfer is expected to be
completed in the next 24 to 48 hours.
Italian side Napoli also met Lille's
asking price, but their proposal was
rejected by the player's camp.
Pepe tends to operate on the right
wing and cut in on to his left foot,
but can also be used as a striker in a
4-4-2 formation.
He scored 23 goals for Lille last sea-
son and satisfies Arsenal's need for a
wide player with pace and high tech-
nical ability.
Arsenal offered £40m for Crystal
Palace's Ivory Coast winger Wil-
fried Zaha earlier this month, but
their Premier League rivals value the
player at about £80m.
Pepe scored 23 goals in 41 games for Lille last season
