USMNT star Ricardo Pepi facing ‘tricky’ transfer conundrum as Fulham & striker-needy Premier League teams monitor 19-goal PSV forward

Pepi was prevented from leaving the Netherlands before the last deadline passed, but was said to have seen a deal worth upwards of £30 million ($40m) agreed after undergoing a medical in west London.

Fulham have reportedly backed away from said agreement, as they wanted an opt-out clause to be included ahead of the summer window, but talks could resume - particularly if the highly-rated frontman impresses for his country on the grandest of international stages.

The Cottagers have lost experienced Mexican forward Raul Jimenez, after seeing him reach the end of his contract and return to Wolves as a free agent, meaning that more firepower needs to be acquired ahead of the 2026-27 campaign.

A swoop for Pepi would appear to make sense for club and player, with ex-USMNT keeper Keller - speaking in association with William Hill - Final One Standing - telling GOAL when asked about potential benefits for all concerned: “The one tricky part for me is with Ricardo - the same thing with Gio Reyna - at PSV, he was playing more coming off the bench because of the personnel that were in front of him there.

“There's a part of me that says, ‘stay at PSV until you establish yourself as the starter and then make the move’. But then there's also a part of me that's like, if Fulham think he's the right guy and he thinks he's the right guy and is ready for that opportunity, then go and see if it's the right move for you.

“It's a little tricky, but if you get that opportunity to play in the Premier League, improve yourself, go for it.”

Pepi has made impressive progress since stepping out of his MLS comfort zone at FC Dallas in January 2022 and linking up with German outfit Augsburg. He was given little opportunity to catch the eye there, but plundered 13 goals during a loan spell at Groningen in 2022-23.

Those exploits secured a switch to PSV, with the target being found on 45 occasions in Eindhoven through 102 appearances - becoming a three-time Eredivisie title winner in the process.

His output has been increasingly year on year, with a personal-best return of 19 goals being posted last season. Pressed on whether Pepi is now Premier League-ready, former Leicester, Tottenham and Fulham shot-stopper Keller added: “Now that's the tricky part. And we've seen that before with the transition for goal scorers from the Eredivisie to that next step. It's not been consistent for a lot of players when they've made that move.

“I saw Ricardo in the friendly the other day [against Senegal], start the match. And the one thing that I really liked about it, you have strikers that if they don't score a goal for you, they don't give you anything. And then you have other strikers that are linking up, they're there, they're the first line of defense, they're pressing, they're good defensively on corners. There's other attributes they give you besides scoring goals.

“Yes, of course, strikers have to score goals, but sometimes when they offer you more, and I think that’s sometimes even more important at a club like Fulham where mid-table is great - anything above that's a bonus and if you're not looking over your shoulder come March, then fantastic.

“So sometimes it's not about finding a 30-goal-a-season scorer. It's about a guy that's going to give you 10, 12, if you get more than that, bonus, but he gives you other things as well. I think Ricardo can do that.”

Pepi - who will be pushing for game time in the USMNT's clash with Australia on Friday - is tied to a contract in the Netherlands through to 2030, meaning that PSV are under no pressure to sell. They would be delighted to see the Texas native star on World Cup duty and nudge his asking price up even further.

It remains to be seen whether Fulham, or any other Premier League side, come back in for the hard-working frontman now that another transfer window has been unlocked, but a new challenge - which takes him another step up the ladder - should be embraced at some stage.