Arsenal’s £72m deal for Nicolas Pepe has made him the most expensive African of all time.
Arsenal finally announced Nicolas Pepe’s arrival on Thursday afternoon and it didn’t take Ahramonline long to work out just where this placed him in the ranks of the most expensive Africans to play the game – firmly at the top.
Here is the top ten:
10Wilfried Bony, £28m ($34m) – Manchester City
SWANSEA, WALES – APRIL 28: Swansea player Wilfried Bony looks on before the Premier League match between Swansea City and Chelsea at Liberty Stadium on April 28, 2018 in Swansea, Wales. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
9Islam Slimani, £29.5m ($35.8m) – Leicester City
LEICESTER, ENGLAND – JANUARY 16: Islam Slimani of Leicester City evades Markus Schwabl of Fleetwood Town during The Emirates FA Cup Third Round Replay match between Leicester City and Fleetwood Town at The King Power Stadium on January 16, 2018 in Leicester, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images )
8Eric Bailly, £30m (36.4m) – Manchester United
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – APRIL 28: An injured Eric Bailly of Manchester United is given assistance during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Chelsea FC at Old Trafford on April 28, 2019 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
7Sadio Mane, £35m ($42.5m) – Liverpool
DAKAR, SENEGAL – MARCH 26: Sadio Mane of Senegal looks on during a friendly match between Senegal and Mali after both teams qualified for the 2019 CAN held in Egypt, on March 26, 2019 in Dakar, Senegal. (Photo by Xaume Olleros/Getty Images)
6Mohamed Salah, £36.9m ($45m) – Liverpool
LONDON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 22: Mohamed Salah of Liverpool celebrates as he scores their second goal as Petr Cech of Arsenal looks dejected during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Liverpool at Emirates Stadium on December 22, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
5Naby Keita, £52.75m ($64m) – Liverpool
NAPLES, ITALY – OCTOBER 03: Naby Keita of Liverpool warms up before the Group C match of the UEFA Champions League between SSC Napoli and Liverpool at Stadio San Paolo on October 3, 2018 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
4Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, £56m ($71m) – Arsenal
LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 28: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal in action during the Emirates Cup match between Arsenal and Olympique Lyonnais at the Emirates Stadium on July 28, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
3Riyad Mahrez, £60m ($76m) – Manchester City
Algeria’s forward Riyad Mahrez (R) celebrates with the trophy during the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) Final football match between Senegal and Algeria at the Cairo International Stadium in Cairo on July 19, 2019. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP)
2Cedric Bakambu, £65.4m ($83m) – Beijing Guoan
BURI RAM, THAILAND – APRIL 09: Cedric Bakambu of Beijing Guoan celebrates scoring the opening goal during the AFC Champions League Group G match between Buriram United and Beijing Guoan at Chang Arena on April 9, 2019 in Buri Ram, Thailand. (Photo by Pakawich Damrongkiattisak/Getty Images)
