Arsenal confirm agreement with attacker to push along next move on a free transfer
Nicolas Pepe has been released from the final year of his contract with Arsenal, which will enable him to join Trabzonspor, the club have confirmed.
Trabzonspor have been teasing the arrival of Pepe in recent days and Arsenal have now given them a helping hand by terminating his contract one year ahead of schedule. Therefore, despite rumours about a transfer fee, the Ivory Coast international can join his new club on a free transfer.
Arsenal announced in a club statement on Saturday evening that they are allowing Pepe to change clubs without them receiving a transfer fee. Considering he was their former record signing for £72m, it is not an ideal end to his time with the club.
However, since he was completely out of Mikel Arteta’s plans, Arsenal have deemed it best to remove Pepe from the wage bill. In turn, he is now one step closer to kickstarting his Trabzonspor career.
Pepe will be playing for a Turkish Super Lig side for the first time in his career as a result of his switch. Last season, he was on loan in France with Nice.
Arsenal bought Pepe from Lille back in 2019, but after 111 appearances, he can now talk about his time at the Emirates Stadium as a thing of the past.
The transfer window in Turkey remains open until September 15. Pepe was previously linked with Besiktas in the Super Lig, but is becoming a Trabzonspor player instead.
