Inside Arsenal's Nicolas Pepe headache as Mikel Arteta may need olive branch

Mikel Arteta has a real headache on his hands when it comes to Nicolas Pepe. The Ivorian hasn't hit the ground running since joining the Gunners for a club-record fee of £72million back in 2019 and looks set to leave this summer. But offloading him will prove to be a difficult task.

Pepe's wage expectations after banking £140,000 a week at Arsenal are sure to turn off a lot of potential suitors and with only one year remaining on his deal at the Emirates, many clubs will be far keener to wait until they can snap him up on a free next summer.

That being said, Pepe wasn't spotted travelling over to Germany with the team as they prepare for their pre-season tour with a training camp at Adidas headquarters.

This list only accounts for 29 players so it may be that Pepe was on the plane but just wasn't picked up by cameras. Regardless it is understood that he doesn't have a place in Arteta's long-term vision.