Arsenal: Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey-ey, goodbye Wilfried Zaha

Arsenal are preparing to announce the signing of Nicolas Pepe, which will officially call to an end the most annoying transfer rumor since Karim Benzema—Wilfried Zaha.

Maybe the title of this article is petty of me. Should I really be that excited to finally see Arsenal‘s link to Wilfried Zaha broken? Trick question, of course I should be. Because there is nothing that gets me more riled up as a writer than a headline that has been stupid since day one lingering on throughout the entire transfer window.

It’s not like we haven’t seen it before. Back in my earlier days, links to Karim Benzema used to keep me awake at night. Not because I wanted him, but because they were so annoying and it’s all anyone would talk about.

I thought those kinds of rumors would be done with the limited transfer budget that we reportedly had, but Wilfried Zaha’s rumor mill was determined to prove me wrong.

In what has been the most improbably series of events, the Gunners have found their solution—the younger, more prolific, goal-happier Nicolas Pepe, who is being reported by the Guardian, BBC and ESPN as having a deal in place.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

Arsenal will pay the massive £72m transfer fee in five installments of £14.4m, which chips away at our transfer budget in the next handful of transfer windows, but that shouldn’t be a noticeable chip if we can get back to the Champions League, which this kind of signing greatly boosts the odds of.

Pepe contributed 33 goals last year, which is a number that Zaha only dreams about, but has never been able to get near.

My opinion of Zaha soured when he was valued at over three times what Ryan Fraser was going for, despite being outperformed by the Scottish winger every single year. It’s a simple enough equation, you sign the man who has proven more.

Pepe is coming over from Ligue 1, which certainly indicates there will be a drop-off in production, but it would be surprising to see him tally less goals than Wilfried Zaha, who figures to be stranded at Palace until they can ask for a reasonable fee or accept that their valuation is way off base.

It’s nothing against Zaha. It’s mostly against Palace. It’s completely against the nature of transfer rumors. I am so happy and so ready for Pepe to be officially announced because it will mean the end of this damn Zaha transfer escapade.