Edu is leaving his role as Arsenal’s Sporting Director at the end of the season, and he’ll leave behind a remarkable legacy.
Indeed, Edu played a huge part in turning Arsenal from pretenders into contenders in recent years as he played a key part in a number of vital signings.
| Edu’s biggest signings at Arsenal | Fee |
| Declan Rice | £105m |
| Nicolas Pepe | £72m |
| Kai Havertz | £65m |
| Ben White | £50m |
| Gabriel Jesus | £45m |
Edu has made some fantastic signings at Arsenal, but, as with anyone working at the elite level, he doesn’t hit a home run every time.
Indeed, Edu has missed the mark on occasion, and speaking on the Seaman Says Podcast, David Seaman has named Nicolas Pepe as the one poor signing the Brazilian made during his time at Arsenal.

Nicolas Pepe was Edu’s only poor signing
Seaman named Edu as Arsenal’s only poor signing, stating that the rest of the big-name players he brought in were mostly decent.
Edu signed the likes of Declan Rice, Ben White and Kai Havertz for Arsenal, but, Pepe was one blemish on his record.
“Let’s have a look at the players he’s brought in. Declan Rice is the biggest one, Nicolas Pepe, Kai Havertz, Ben White, Thomas Partey, Gabriel Jesus, Calafiori this season, Timber, Odegaard, Vieira as well,” The host said.
“Apart from the Pepe one they’re all decent aren’t they?” Seaman said.
How did Pepe do at Arsenal?
Seaman says that Pepe was a poor signing, and he’s not wrong.
Pepe arrived at Arsenal off the back of a 20-goal season for Lille, but he never rediscovered that type of form at the Emirates.
| Nicolas Pepe stats for Arsenal | |
| Games | 112 |
| Goals | 27 |
| Cost per goal | £2.6m |
Pepe just didn’t click at Arsenal, and, that £72m pricetag really didn’t help things.
In fact, Pepe says that he started to genuinely hate football when he played for Arsenal.
“The only people who have always supported me are the Arsenal fans. At Arsenal I suffered a kind of trauma, as if my passion had been ripped away from me, I had a disgust for football. I doubted myself to the point that I thought about quitting everything,” Pepe said.
Pepe’s move to Arsenal should’ve been the launching pad to kickstart his career at the top level, but, instead, he quickly began trending downwards after arriving in north London.
Mikel Arteta says it never worked for Pepe at Arsenal, and this has to be considered a rare failed signing for Edu in his role.
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