Ian Wright has warned that it's a "last chance saloon" for Nicolas Pepe at Arsenal.
The Ivorian has been inconsistent since arriving from Lille in the summer of 2019 of £72million and hasn't been close to justifying that lofty price.
Pepe was linked with an exit in January amid reports that Mikel Arteta was willing to cut his losses with the forward.
Pepe attracted interest from Ligue 1 duo Marseille and Lyon with both sides keen on the player, according to French outlet L’Equipe via GFFN.
Marseille wanted to bring Pepe to the south of France along with his compatriot and Manchester United defender Eric Bailly. Lyon were said to hold an ‘equally’ strong interest in the player who ripped the French league apart whilst with Lille.
football.london claimed in December that Pepe would assess his options in the winter window just gone by if his situation at Arsenal continued to deteriorate, but he would stay put for the time being.
Ian Wright reckons Pepe needs to step up to the plate with Arsenal crying out for an attacking spark after failing to sign a striker in the window, as well as losing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on a free transfer to Barcelona.
The Arsenal hero reckons it's a "last chance saloon" for the 26-year-old as he feels Arteta has left him on the fringes of the side this season for a reason.
"Up to this point he’s not used Pepe in any way that makes me think he’s got love for Pepe," he told Wrighty’s House podcast.
"I think Pepe might be in the last chance saloon, with the number of games he hasn't played
"I’d like to see something from him."
Wright found himself frustrated watching Pepe impress for Ivory Coast at the African Cup of Nations as he's unable to replicate that at the Emirates for one reason or another.
He added: "When you watch him in the Africa Cup of Nations, where I think the defender is even harder with them guys, with how athletic, how good and how intelligent they are.
"You’ve got to do a lot more, and when you watch him, he’s done it! Why aren’t we getting that out of him?"
Pepe has found playing time hard to come by in the Premier League as the likes of Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli continue to shine.
And Arteta revealed that he approached him about his lack of playing time before their emphatic 5-1 win over Sunderland in the Carabao Cup last month, where he got on the scoresheet and registered two assists.
He said: "A player that doesn’t play if he’s happy we have a big problem.
"Nico has not been happy and asking for more minutes. This is the attitude we want from our players."
