Marcelo Bielsa believes Nicolas Pepe has the attributes necessary to justify his status as English football’s fifth most expensive player in history.
Arsenal forked out £72million to land the Ivory Coast international last summer, eight times the fee Bielsa paid Angers for Pepe when he was head coach of French club Lille in the summer of 2017.
The pair are reacquainted for Monday night’s third-round FA Cup tie at the Emirates — one that pitches the 1972 finalists together — just days after the 24-year-old put in arguably his best performance since his big-money move, marking his 11th Premier League start with a third goal in a 2-0 win over Manchester United.