Nicolas Pepe in pictures: Arsenal club-record signing poses in kit after £72m move from Lille

Arsenal have finally announced the signing of Nicolas Pepe from Lille.

The Ivorian winger has put pen to paper on a five-year contract in north London and becomes Arsenal's record signing in a structured deal worth £72million as well as the most expensive African footballer of all time.

Pepe will wear the No19 shirt at the Emirates Stadium and could make his competitive debut on the first day of the new Premier League season as the Gunners travel to face Newcastle on August 11.

Arsenal also meet Barcelona in their final pre-season friendly at Camp Nou on Sunday.

"Nicolas is a highly-rated and talented winger who was wanted by many of the top teams in Europe, " said Arsenal boss Unai Emery.

"Signing a top-class winger has been one of our key objectives in this transfer window and I'm delighted he's joining.

"He will add pace, power and creativity, with the aim of bringing more goals to our team."

Pepe scored 22 goals last season to help Lille achieve a second-place finish behind Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 before representing the Ivory Coast at the Africa Cup of Nations.

He follows Gabriel Martinelli, Dani Ceballos and William Saliba as the fourth player signed by Arsenal during the current summer transfer window.

Pepe said he was looking forward to linking up with a number of high-profile team-mates, including striker Alexandre Lacazette.

"When I knew I was coming to Arsenal, I immediately thought of the French guys who play here," he told Arsenal.com.

"I thought of Ozil, the world champions, Lacazette, Aubameyang and many more. Of course, these are the players who sprang to mind because I used to watch them when I was at Lille.

"Also, Lacazette used to play for Lyon and so I have had the opportunity to play against him. It will be an honour to play alongside him."