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‘Pepe cost ridiculous sum & doesn’t look interested’ – Smith questions attitude of £72m Arsenal winger

Nicolas Pepe has seen his attitude at Arsenal questioned by Alan Smith, with the Ivorian winger accused of looking “disinterested” after costing the Gunners a “ridiculous” £72 million ($98m) fee.

A transfer record at Emirates Stadium was smashed during the summer of 2019.

Having seen Pepe star at Lille, an ambitious Premier League outfit believed they were acquiring a potential superstar when bringing a talented 25-year-old onto their books.

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Little value has been found in that deal, though, with a big-money addition failing to live up to expectations.

Pepe is far from the being the only player in north London to have struggled for form, with experienced Brazilian Willian also falling into that category following his arrival in 2020, and Smith admits collective standards need to improve under Mikel Arteta.