Arsenal flop who went public with Mikel Arteta fall-out could get shot at revenge

have not made too many more disappointing signings than Nicolas Pepe. The Ivory Coast winger was snapped up for an eye-watering in 2019 after a scintillating season with Lille, and he remained their record purchase until landed at the Emirates Stadium four years later.

Pepe's spell in north London did not go entirely to plan. His return of five goals in his first Premier League season was underwhelming, and although he racked up 16 in all competitions the following his campaign, he went on to become a peripheral figure in 2021/22. The 29-year-old spent the season after that on loan at OGC Nice before his Arsenal contract was ended 12 months early.

A year after leaving on a free, Pepe went public with his and Mikel Arteta's 'tense' relationship. "With Arteta, it wasn't... well, it was good at the start," he told . "After that, the confidence wasn't really there.

"I got less and less game time, so there was some frustration. I'm not someone who likes being on the bench every week without justification or explanation. So yeah, that's something that created some tension."

Having been given the cold shoulder by Arteta, frozen out of the starting line-up and flogged before his contract had run its course, Pepe could be forgiven for looking back negatively on his Arsenal stint. And he may be about to get a shot at revenge.

According to , the wide man's resurgence in form at Villarreal has piqued the interest of Everton and Wolves. Both clubs are said to be 'keeping an eye' on Pepe's situation as he comes to the end of an impressive season in La Liga, which has seen him notch seven goal contributions in 24 games.

Although still not producing the kind of output Gunners fans expected for their huge financial outlay, Pepe would surely relish the chance to prove that he can be effective in the Premier League, and to show Arteta that he made the wrong decision by letting him go.

Looking back on his unsuccessful time in north London, Pepe believes that his eye-catching price tag left him doomed from the start.

He said: "When a club pays that much for you, the little details don't matter. Automatically, the first player to be criticised is the one that cost a lot of money. Arsenal spent a lot of money on me and I paid the price for it."