PSV will only sell Ricardo Pepi to Fulham for 'exorbitant' transfer offer

4 days ago 2

It would take an "exorbitant offer" to pry Ricardo Pepi away from PSV during the January transfer window, according to the club's technical director Earnie Stewart.

Stewart confirmed that Fulham had seen a bid rejected for the U.S. men's national team striker, who has been one of the most efficient scorers in the Netherlands since joining PSV in 2023.

Fulham's bid was worth around $35 million per The Athletic, but that wasn't enough to convince PSV.

“We received an offer and we rejected it,” Stewart told VI. “We have no intention of selling Ricardo."

Asked if he would consider a higher bid for the 22-year-old, Stewart replied: "There's no point in thinking about that at the moment, because there is no such offer.”

Pepi started the season slow after recovering from a serious knee injury, but has 10 goals and two assists in 21 matches across all competitions. That includes goals in each of his past four Eredivisie games.

Fulham has prioritized the striker, hoping to bring him in to compete with Raúl Jiménez and Rodrigo Muniz. The Cottagers are reportedly considering making an improved offer for Pepi.

But according to Stewart — himself a former USMNT attacker — PSV has little incentive to sell Pepi during the winter transfer window.

"The market has changed," he said. "After the winter break, you still have two games (Bayern Munich and Newcastle) in the Champions League, which makes it more complicated.

"If you sell a player, you can't replace him in the Champions League. You can only register a new player in February if you're still in the tournament and the market is already closed. That's not ideal."

PSV also currently holds an 11-point lead atop the Eredivisie as it looks to win its third straight league title.

Due to his injury, Pepi managed just one appearance for the USMNT in 2025. The Texas native came off the bench in November's 2-1 win over Paraguay.