Arsenal have agreed a record £72m deal for the winger and with that comes a responsibility to be more serious, says his dad
“I never even thought about that,” admitted Nicolas Pépé in November. “Now, in modern football, it’s going fast. I did not see myself being transferred for 10 million. I did not even see myself becoming a professional …”
Pépé was born in quaint-sounding Mantes-la-Jolie – 18 miles to the west of the capital – but raised on the mean streets of Paris’s 19th arrondissement that was also the birthplace of Kylian Mbappé. But unlike the only player to finish ahead of him in last season’s Ligue 1 scoring charts Pépé was never expected to become a superstar. Even his father had his doubts when the player who is set to become Arsenal’s record signing and the most expensive African in history announced at the age of six it was his intention to follow his dream.
Written by Ed Aarons
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/jul/31/nicolas-pepe-arsenal-not-fun-lille under the title “Nicolas Pépé must learn at Arsenal that football is not fun … it’s his job”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
