Leeds United are reportedly interested in signing Nicolas Pepe from Arsenal to replace Raphinha who is off to Barcelona in a deal which is said could reach £55m.

Arsenal themselves were interested in signing Raphinha but the player was always intent on going to Barcelona. Even though the Spaniards can’t afford to pay players they already own, somehow, they managed to find the money to convince Leeds to sell.

As a result, Leeds now have plenty of cash to fill the hole left in their squad.

Pepe is reportedly available for as little as £25m after Arsenal vastly overpaid for the winger under ‘transfer guru’ Raul Sanlehi’s leadership, but his wages are causing an issues.

Sevilla are also said to be interested but cannot afford to pay him the £100kpw he currently earns for sitting on Arsenal’s bench.

Mikel Arteta has given Pepe plenty of chances. He’s played 93 times under the Spanish coach, scoring 23 and assisting 16, averaging just under an hour per game.

Given that Arteta has only managed 130 Arsenal matches, Pepe has been involved far more than most of us seem to realise.

Still, his position at the club seems clear with the 27-year-old playing just 87 minutes of the last 10 games of the season.