Arsenal confirm departure of one-time record singing to Ligue 1

will go back to France on a one-year loan, and

Nice

won't be able to buy him when the deal is over. The move comes after Pepe, who signed with Arsenal for a club-record £72m ($85m), had a few bad seasons. The former Lille winger has never really worked out with the Gunners, so Mikel Arteta has decided not to use him this season.

AND EVEN MORE: The winger, who has played 112 times for

and scored 27 goals, had said before that he was "determined" to fight for his future at the Emirates, even though he had been offered to leave many times. Pepe's time at Arsenal is over and has been for a while. Last season, it was clear that Arteta no longer trusted the winger. So this will be a good move for him, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him get his career back on track in Ligue 1.

Arsenal needs to focus on finding a new player to take his place. It's fine to let Pepe go, but they need someone to help relieve the pressure on the right side, where Bukayo Saka is already working too hard. The Gunners are on top of the Premier League right now, and on August 27, they will play

Fulham

.

Follow

for the