Arsenal spent massive amounts of money to sign Nicolas Pepe from the Ligue 1 in 2019. But so far, the player hasn’t done anything noteworthy at the club.
Last season, Pepe netted five goals in the Premier League but this season, the winger has already managed to equal that tally in just 25 league matches. But still, he has a long way to go before he can replicate his form which he showed at Lille.
While starts have been really hard to come by for the 25-year-old over the past couple of months, manager Mikel Arteta seems to be trusting him a lot more and the player even received praise from his boss after his performance against Villarreal in the Europa League semi-final.
“I think he’s come a long way in the last few months,” the manager said, as per Arsenal.com.
“His work ethic has been phenomenal and he’s deciding many more games and doing what he can do in the final third in a much more consistent way.
“So I’m really happy with his performances and now he needs to continue like this.
“Confidence in every player is crucial and every time you step on that field, if they feel secure, if they feel protected, if they feel like they’re supported by their manager and their team-mates, it’s something that is crucial to be able to perform.
View this post on Instagram
“Then with the things that he could do better, he’s doing much better with as well. But it’s all a mix that is reflected in his performance.”
Last season, Nicolas Pepe was playing mostly down the right flank but this campaign, that place has been taken over by Bukayo Saka.
Everyone thought Pepe would be warming the benches now that Saka is playing in his usual position but against Villarreal, the Ivorian played on the left-hand side and this tactical swift garnered pretty good results.
Overall, in the 2020-21 season, the 25-year-old has played as a left winger a total of 10 times across all competitions.
Aubameyang has been on and off from the first-team squad for various reasons this campaign and maybe Mikel Arteta is planning to make Nicolas Pepe the long-term successor to Aubameyang.
The Gabon international still holds a lot of command within the Arsenal side but his performance graph have been dipping sharply and it’s not long before the forward is shown the door at the club.
Now only time will tell if Nicolas Pepe can be the heir to the Arsenal star but if the Villarreal game is anything to go by then the Ivorian’s use on the left flank looks really promising.
