According to reports, Arsenal and Barcelona are among the clubs interested in Lille youngster Nicolas Pepe. The 23 year old has had a fantastic start to the new Ligue 1 season, with his tally of five goals and five assists helping LOSC to second in the league table behind leaders Paris Saint-Germain.
The Ivorian winger moved to Les Dogues from Angers in the summer of 2017 on a five year deal. His first season was quite good, but he seems to have taken his game to another level this season, and that has attracted the attention of several top flight European clubs.
Club president Gerard Lopez has indicated to media outlets in France that Barcelona have made their interest known. Pepe will be central to Lille’s aspirations of Champions League football, and the player himself has indicated that he has no plans to leave LOSC in the winter, which means a transfer next summer seems more likely.
Arsenal are keeping tabs on the youngster’s progress, with Lille having reportedly slapped a 30 million euro price tag on their star asset.
Given Lille’s track record in churning out talented stars- the likes of Eden Hazard, Gervinho and Dimitri Payet were all LOSC players at one stage in their careers, it explains why the Blaugrana and the Gunners are both interested in his signature.
Pepe has already been capped by Ivory Coast and was part of their squad at the Africa Cup of Nations last year.
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