Arsenal agree to send Nicolas Pepe on a season-long loan to Nice

Arsenal agreed to send club record signing Nicolas Pepe loaned to the French team in Nice.

The winger, 27, has struggled to make an impact at the Emirates since his £72m transfer from Lille in the summer of 2019 and Sportsmail understands he will complete his direct loan switch in the coming days..

Reports suggest that there is no call option included in the transaction.

Arsenal have agreed to send club-record £72m Nicolas Pepe on loan to Nice

Pepe only made five premier league starts for the Gunners last season, scoring just one goal in the top flight.

The Ivory Coast international has also failed to feature in any of Arsenal’s first three games of the season, suggesting he is not on his way to becoming a key figure in Mikel Arteta’s side.

Nice signed former Premier League duo Aaron Ramsey and Kasper Schmeichel this summer, while Arsenal are expected to contribute to Pepe’s wages if he moves to the French Riviera.

The winger has fallen down the North London pecking order following the emergence of young duo Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli in recent years.

Pepe has fallen out of favor under Gunners manager Mikel Arteta (pictured) this season

The winger has struggled to make an impact at the Emirates since his £72m move from Lille

And the Gunners boss was coy when asked about Pepe’s potential departure after his recent omissions from the side.

Speaking ahead of a press conference ahead of the club’s win over Bournemouth earlier this month, Arteta said: “What we can communicate, we always do when it’s the right time.”

“We discussed the fact that we had a great squad and we made decisions and allowed some players to leave. Until the end of the window, anything is possible with any player.’

Pepe made 112 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring 27 goals.