Nicolas Pepe: Saint Nic Is Back

[GunnerShy]

The side needs his direct play. There were two examples of poor touch that stood out. One was smashed at him (still should have controlled). The other he was under pressure. On a good day he takes them both. But there were more obvious examples of poor touch in the box by ESR, Ødegaard and Saka. It happens.

Until the other guys develop some end product, there's always going to be a place for him in this overcoached side.

 

[Jury]

He's part of our best eleven and he'll have his best season by far. He's a match winner and I'm glad we have him.

 

[CountChocula]

People not rating his performance because a couple balls pinged 50 mph bounced off of him? He can be frustrating but can pull something out of his ass at any moment and produce some brilliance. He also works hard for the team and always puts in a shift.

I like that he's finally added dribbling right to his game (first 10 min of the game), so he's a lot harder to defend. Shows he works hard off the pitch and tries hard to improve himself, so he's not as 1-dimensional like when he first joined. He has that X-factor that can get goals when our attack is stagnant. At first I was frustrated seeing him lose the ball often, but that cutting edge seems a skill no one else on the squad has, so it's important that he starts every game.

 

[Geofranco]

Fully agreed. 90% of the 'glass half full posts' in this thread and its predecessors are wishful thinking due to his purchase price. He can be a useful player, but unless he gets bit by a radioactive spider (or maybe Ronaldo, if he takes a nibble at Old Trafford in a few months), he's not going to be special.

This guy is no better than Walcott. I would say I even rated Walcott higher, but no one would ever call Walcott close to world class talent. I have even seen some compare this guy to Sanchez who was another chaotic player, but had way more raw talent and was a genuine gamechanger no matter the circumstance. It has to be agendas, cause nobody with eyes would say this guy has quality. It was the same thing with Ramsey when he was here. His fanboys would swear he was a quality player, but the guy only looked class for that 13/14 season. Apart from that, he was mediocre, but would score a spectacular goal here and there and people would pretend he had quality.

 

[GunnerShy]

This guy is no better than Walcott. I would say I even rated Walcott higher, but no one would ever call Walcott close to world class talent. I have even seen some compare this guy to Sanchez who was another chaotic player, but had way more raw talent and was a genuine gamechanger no matter the circumstance. It has to be agendas, cause nobody with eyes would say this guy has quality. It was the same thing with Ramsey when he was here. His fanboys would swear he was a quality player, but the guy only looked class for that 13/14 season. Apart from that, he was mediocre, but would score a spectacular goal here and there and people would pretend he had quality.

If some compare him with Sanchez I can understand in so far as that they were both difference makers in the final third.

But the gap in quality is significant. Sanchez during his arsenal pomp was close to the best player in the league at the time. £70m wouldn't buy you that quality of player. Even in a covid market.

 

[DasBootist]

I like that he's finally added dribbling right to his game (first 10 min of the game), so he's a lot harder to defend. Shows he works hard off the pitch and tries hard to improve himself, so he's not as 1-dimensional like when he first joined. He has that X-factor that can get goals when our attack is stagnant. At first I was frustrated seeing him lose the ball often, but that cutting edge seems a skill no one else on the squad has, so it's important that he starts every game.

He was left out in so many of Emery's team selections, in his first season in a foreign country, that it isn't fair to compare the player he is now to the one who joined Arsenal.

 

[jjmcjohnson]

Would like to see him tried up front, replacing that Aubumeyang.
Saka, ESR and Ødegaard behind would be our deadliest attack

 

[Taylor Gang Gunners]

Just get him closer to goal, at all times. He creates such panic for the opposition, you can see it. He's a good finisher too, one of the few genuine goal threats we have in our team.

 

[Trilly]

No fun allowed.

Was probably told he only got the start today because ESR wasn't fully fit and Saka had to play at lw.

My boy going down swinging

Think Arteta hates that he has to start Pepe but he knows he has to unfortunately our two best prospects don’t seem to be goalscorers (for now) and neither is our shiny new playmaker.

Not sure if by design or he’s only realised now but Teta has kind of made Pepe one of the first names on the team sheet. Only way out of it now is to get the Laca-Auba front line to work.

Someone posted the shots percentile of him in the box and it's pretty ****ing good.

Every time he gets inside that right hand side little corner of the box he is dangerous.

He’s actually mastered that far post curler it’s a joke. If we created more chances the guy would have a Robben type reputation (disclaimer I said type before people get outraged).

He’s hit the woodwork 3/4 times this season already, I’m expecting some goals soon.

 

[Blood on the Tracks]

I thought the match yesterday kind of summed up Pepe's time at Arsenal. Infuriating for most of the match but ultimately popped up with a game changing contribution.

There's a lack of creativity / end product in the side. You kind of have to put up with Pepe's inconsistencies because he does have those couple of moments a match generally where he makes things happen and we're desperately in need of those moments currently.

 

[BigPoppaPump]

Think Arteta hates that he has to start Pepe but he knows he has to unfortunately our two best prospects don’t seem to be goalscorers (for now) and neither is our shiny new playmaker.

Not sure if by design or he’s only realised now but Teta has kind of made Pepe one of the first names on the team sheet. Only way out of it now is to get the Laca-Auba front line to work.

He’s actually mastered that far post curler it’s a joke. If we created more chances the guy would have a Robben type reputation (disclaimer I said type before people get outraged).

He’s hit the woodwork 3/4 times this season already, I’m expecting some goals soon.

I’ve been comparing him to Robben for ages, he’s the Robben/Bale type mould of player. Tricky Micky plays him as an RWB though.

He’s like a cross between Robben and Walcott.

 

[The_Playmaker]

Would like to see him tried up front, replacing that Aubumeyang.
Saka, ESR and Ødegaard behind would be our deadliest attack

The Norwich game highlights the reason why Ødegaard, ESR and Saka cannot all start at the expense of Auba and Pepe.

Auba and Pepe are the finishers. We need to pick 2 creators behind them and then have 2 double pivot players. That is how you get balance. I don't see why we are trying to fit 3 creators behind a striker who doesn't want to get involved in build up and then get confused when the 3 players do not score.

Saka, Ødegaard and ESR will not be consistent scorers. Pepe, Auba, Laca and Martinelli have all had double figure scoring seasons. 2 of them should be picked to play together and then choose between Saka, ESR and Ødegaard for the creator positions.

I don't understand the need for a 10 when we play with 2 10s anyway and couple put a forward alongside Auba.

 

[AbouCuéllar]

This guy is no better than Walcott. I would say I even rated Walcott higher, but no one would ever call Walcott close to world class talent. I have even seen some compare this guy to Sanchez who was another chaotic player, but had way more raw talent and was a genuine gamechanger no matter the circumstance. It has to be agendas, cause nobody with eyes would say this guy has quality. It was the same thing with Ramsey when he was here. His fanboys would swear he was a quality player, but the guy only looked class for that 13/14 season. Apart from that, he was mediocre, but would score a spectacular goal here and there and people would pretend he had quality.

Was having this conversation with some mates yesterday, Walcott 12-14 isn't a bad shout for Pepe (trading Pepe's technical superiority for Walcott's pure pace and off the ball movement), and Walcott in terms of production in 12-14 was absolutely elite. His g+a/90 during that period was at Sterling levels during his best period for City (a team that scored significantly more than 12-14 Arsenal).

With players like Pepe and Walcott you have to counterbalance what your eyes see with the pure information; they are frustrating to watch on an aesthetic level but end product just doesn't lie. At the end the player that makes your team score more is the more valuable player, and that was Walcott's case in that period, and I think it's safe to say it's Pepe's in this one. He needs to be in the XI in 90% of games.

 

[TakeChillPill]

Completely ruins any flow in our attack.

 

[Taylor Gang Gunners]

Bare with me here, but Pepe here kind of reminds me of Bruno Fernandes at Yanited.

Very rarely you see Fernandes have a good 90 minutes for Yanited. He'll often frustrate then pop up with a moment of magic. That's sort of like Pepe here, he'll have spells in games where he seems ineffective, then out of nowhere comes a goal contribution. The difference is Yanited have setup their midfield to account for Fernandes' flaws, whilst we are still using Pepe a bit too much in our approach play.

We need to get him making runs in behind more. For all his pace and finishing ability we rarely see him going through 1v1 or running at the last defender- which is where his strengths lie.

If you forward to 2:32 this is the kind of situation we need to see Pepe in more often. Especially against bigger teams that play higher up, he can be such a weapon for us.

 

[akhil]

This guy is no better than Walcott. I would say I even rated Walcott higher, but no one would ever call Walcott close to world class talent. I have even seen some compare this guy to Sanchez who was another chaotic player, but had way more raw talent and was a genuine gamechanger no matter the circumstance. It has to be agendas, cause nobody with eyes would say this guy has quality. It was the same thing with Ramsey when he was here. His fanboys would swear he was a quality player, but the guy only looked class for that 13/14 season. Apart from that, he was mediocre, but would score a spectacular goal here and there and people would pretend he had quality.

Walcott had elite poduction for a couple of seasons before his ACL injury. That was also under Wenger in a very attack minded possession team. Pepe under Wenger would've been something special to see. Same thing with Sanchez, Wenger got the best out of these guys. The supply line for these guys had Arteta, Santi and pre-contract Özil, Jack, Ramsey.

This team is just dreadful in terms of amplifying anyones strengths. Nobody looks good in the attack. That's a system issue first and foremost.

 

[hydrofluoric acid]

Im backing him full time this season!

 

[Mrs Bergkamp]

He's erratic but his more involved attitude makes for a better overall performance. We've just got to find a way to stop him being doubled up on and get him closer to goal. Tomi should help with that when they begin to understand each other.

 

[GDeep™]

He's part of our best eleven and he'll have his best season by far. He's a match winner and I'm glad we have him.

With AFCON I’m not expecting a top season. I actually think it’ll be his least productive season.

 

[Jury]

With AFCON I’m not expecting a top season. I actually think it’ll be his least productive season.

I still think he'll be more productive in the games played. Hopefully the Ivory Coast will bomb out early.