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Darren Bent believes that Arsenal treated Nicholas Pepe harshly, given his price tag. The Ivory Coast international was the Gunners' record signing, joining from LOSC Lille in 2019 for a reported €80 million.
Pepe played 112 times for the North Londoners, bagging 27 goals and providing 21 assists and won an FA Cup. Speaking on TALKSPORT, the former striker said (via the Boot Room):
“If you look at Pepe’s stats compared to Antony and Sancho’s combined. He was still okay. He wasn’t rubbish. He was okay. Listen, his stats are better than Sancho and Antony.
"I am talking about two players – that’s combined. He was okay. I think he was harshly treated because of the price tag.”
Pepe saw his time at Arsenal stint come to an end under Mikel Arteta. He was first sent out on loan to OGC Nice in 2022 before being allowed to join Turkish side Trabzonspor for free last summer.
He recently left the Turkish Super League side to join the Spanish side Villareal. The 29-year-old winger will be keen to rekindle his career with the La Liga side.
Tony Cascarino reveals why Arsenal's Declan Rice gets criticised more than Jack Grealish
Former Ireland international Tony Cascarino reckons Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice faces more criticism from Irish fans than Jack Grealish. The two players were eligible to represent both the Three Lions and the Irish, but both opted to represent England.
Speaking on TALKSPORT, Cascarino said (via the boot room):
“I think Declan will get far more stick because he obviously represented Ireland at younger levels and Jack had a choice. If you don’t play him and that choice, then Jack chose England and you live with that.”
Both players started their careers representing the Republic of Ireland at the youth level before choosing to switch their allegiance when the opportunity to represent England arose.
Arsenal's Declan Rice represented the Irish in three games under Martin O'Neil after debuting in 2018 before joining the England camp in 2019 under Gareth Southgate.
Both players can be assured of a harsh welcome om Saturday when the Three Lions visit Ireland for their first game in the UEFA Nations League.
