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5 possible landing spots for Nicolas Pepe this summer

By Kevin Parvizi

TOULOUSE, FRANCE - April 21: Nicolas Pepe #19 of Lille in action during the Toulouse V Lille, French Ligue 1 regular season match at the Stadium Municipal de Toulouse on April 21st 2019 in Toulouse, France (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
TOULOUSE, FRANCE - April 21: Nicolas Pepe #19 of Lille in action during the Toulouse V Lille, French Ligue 1 regular season match at the Stadium Municipal de Toulouse on April 21st 2019 in Toulouse, France (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images) /
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Nicolas Pepe could be one of the best players to switch teams, as Lille have received a smattering of interest in the prolific goal-scoring winger from the world’s top clubs.

One of Lille’s greatest players, Eden Hazard, recently completed a six-figure transfer from Chelsea to Real Madrid. While their current best player, Nicolas Pepe, won’t command quite as much money on the transfer market, he could cost upwards of 70 million euros for the club fortunate enough to land his signature.

The list of teams interested in Pepe is a who’s who of the world’s biggest clubs. From Manchester United to Bayern Munich, there’s no shortage of rich outfits targeting Ligue 1’s second-leading scorer behind phenom and World Cup winner Kylian Mbappe.

Here are five possible landing spots for the Lille winger this summer, and it seems like the most interested clubs are in the Premier League.

Bayern Munich

Important Bayern Munich players like Joshua Kimmich and Robert Lewandowski have done their best to encourage the team to acquire Leroy Sane from Manchester City. Manager Pep Guardiola benched Sane at the end of City’s historically good season, so Sane could be a dream acquisition for a Bayern team looking to add more firepower on the wings.

However, Sane will command a hefty price tag both in terms of transfer value and wages. If City play hardball, Bayern, who rarely spend top dollar for transfers (Lucas Hernandez is a prominent recent exception), could look elsewhere.

The Sun recently reported that Bayern look poised to beat Manchester United and Liverpool in the Pepe sweepstakes, as they are ready to offer nearly 80 million euros to Lille. The importance of this report isn’t necessarily that a deal will happen, but rather that Bayern’s interest in Pepe appears to be strong, especially as the rumors involving Sane have cooled.

Sane is one of the most technically gifted players in the world and is an elite passer. Pepe is more of a goal-scorer, which could make him a better fit for Bayern. They already have Lewandowski supplying goals and Serge Gnabry is a capable goal-scorer, but there’s little else beyond that. Pepe’s 22 goals in Ligue 1 last year stand out, and he could be Bayern’s most lucrative attacking transfer addition in history.

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