Is Nicolas Pepe starting to turn it around?

                                    

Is Nicolas Pepe starting to turn it around as Arsenal start to climb the Premier League table?

By Adam Le Roux

We’d all written him off, we were ready to pack his bags for him and book his flight out of London back in November, but Nicolas Pepe is back with a vengeance, and Arsenal are reaping the rewards. 

After a petulant throw of the head towards Ezgjan Alioski at Elland Road in a drab 0-0 draw with Leeds United, the Ivorian was public enemy number one at the Emirates, with Gooners everywhere baying for blood after the former Lille man’s misdemeanour. 

But in many ways, that setback seems to have been the spark that has ignited the 25-year-old’s season, with a number of impressive performances since he returned from that suspension. 

The verve, the vigour, the confidence, it all looks to be flooding back for the tricky winger of late, and as the season progresses, we could be in store for even more flair and trickery. 

Naughty Nicolas reaches for redemption

The Ivory Coast international was far from alone in having a below-par start to the current campaign, with the majority of the Arsenal squad likely to look back on the start of the season with few fond memories. 

And as good as Pepe can be on his day, those days weren’t coming too often before the turn of the year, with a solitary Premier League goal from open play to his name before we hit 2021. 

Strikes against Dundalk and Molde in the Europa League - the former of which was a memorable right-footed strike into the top corner - proved that he could still produce the goods when called upon, but domestically he continued to struggle. 

And that all came to a head on a frustrating afternoon in Yorkshire, as Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds side succeeded in keeping the Gunners at bay at Elland Road, before the winger finally succumbed to the niggly antics of Alioski, earning himself a three-match ban in the process. 

But instead of going off and licking his wounds, Pepe has proved ever since just how much of a pivotal player he can be for the Gunners going forward, with an immediate response in the midweek European clash against Molde. 

With the ball falling to him at the far post, the winger jinked and jerked his defender from side to side, before unleashing an unstoppable shot into the corner to put his side into the lead in Norway, and in turn clawed back some credibility from the Arsenal faithful who had called for his head days earlier. 

And since his return to domestic action in the week before Christmas, Pepe has fought back into contention with aplomb, with Mikel Arteta welcoming him back into the fold with starts against Southampton and Manchester Untied in the past week. 

A crucial equaliser against the Saints after falling behind so early on paved the way for an Arsenal comeback against Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side on the south coast, with the forward showing composure in front of goal that we have rarely seen from him in his time as a Gunner. 

And that composure and maturity is something that looks to be building into his character, and once he starts to regain his confidence and start linking up with the other attacking options in the side, Arteta will have a lethal player on his hands. 

What more can Pepe provide?

This is not to say that Nicolas Pepe is the finished article, because we all know he is far from that. 

His crossing and end product can still be erratic, and he has the ability to frustrate but delight in equal measure. When it does come off however, it is a joy to behold on the football pitch. 

When the Ivorian picks the ball up on either flank he immediately puts fear into defenders, with his unpredictability and rapid feet making him a nightmare for the opposition to come up against. 

But this trait isn’t something that always pays off for the 25-year-old, with promising attacking moves often breaking down as he runs down blind alleys or picks the wrong pass as the Gunners come streaming forward. 

As mentioned earlier, that composure is something that he looks to have worked on and picking the right option when the pressure is on is something that can make all the difference in separating an average player from a world-class one. 

In Arteta he has the perfect mentor for assessing the options on a football pitch and making the most of opportunities, for he was a master of doing so himself during his playing days.

Some added variation into his game will do Pepe no harm at all, because a player can have all the talent in the world, but if they become predictable their danger can be snuffed out and negated with relative ease. 

How often do you already know what Pepe is going to do before he even gets the ball at his feet? If he picks it up on the right-hand side he’s going to cut inside onto his favoured left foot and try to curl a ball towards goal more often than not, whether it be a cross or a shot. 

Even if that works for the time being, the ability to control the ball just as well on his right foot could well pay dividends for himself and the team in the future. 

He may not be the finished article yet, but it looks as if we are starting to see the Nicolas Pepe that we were all expecting to see in red and white.

Photo Credit: Getty Images