Arsenal and Nicolas Pepe: Ranking the Premier League’s front threes

As Arsenal look to wrap up a deal for Nicolas Pepe, they could feature a front three with the Lille winger, Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. But where does that rank among the Premier League’s elite?

The front three is arguably the most important unit in modern football. Reflect on the very best teams over the past 20 years. Almost all of them had one of the best front threes in the world.

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Lionel Messi, David Villa and Pedro. Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale. Eden Hazard, Diego Costa and Willian. Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud and Kylian Mbappe. Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane — more on that last one later.

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It is not a coincidence that the team with the best attacking trio tends to win the match. Goals are the hardest thing to do in football and you must have a creative wide duo and a prolific centre-forward to score them.

This weekend, news broke regarding Arsenal’s £72 million deal for Lille winger Nicolas Pepe. Pepe is the only player not named Lionel Messi to score 20-plus goals and notch 10-assists in a top-five European league last season. He is one of the brightest wing prospects in world football, and he will partner one of the best strikeforces in world football also, Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Suddenly, Arsenal have the makings of a front three to rival the very best in the Premier League. Two players who scored more than 20 goals and another who was named the club’s Player of the Season. That is a trio to be excited about. But where does it rank among the Premier League’s elite?

The best front three in the Premier League, in my opinion, is Manchester City’s: Leroy Sane, Sergio Aguero, and Raheem Sterling — you could also throw the wonderfully relentless Bernardo Silva into the mix as well. Not far behind is Liverpool’s, the aforementioned Salah, Firmino, Mane triumvirate. But after that, Arsenal’s may well be the next best.

Chelsea have lost Hazard, replacing him with Christian Pulisic, Manchester United’s squad is looking painfully poor at present, although if they make a serious move between now and the deadline that could change, while Spurs’ options lack dynamism and speed in the wide areas, bar Heung-Min Son, who is phenomenal.

You could make the argument that a Son, Harry Kane, Dele Alli/Christian Eriksen trio is as capable as their north London rivals’, but I would rather have the greater speed and potency of the Gunners’ options.

All this is to say that if Arsenal are able to land Pepe, which is seemingly increasingly likely with every passing hour, they will not only have a dangerous front three that opponents should be wary of; they will have assembled an attacking unit that rivals the Premier League’s — and even world’s — elite.