Arsenal vs Liverpool: Nicolas Pepe couldn’t ask for a better full debut

It feels like it’s time for Nicolas Pepe’s full Arsenal debut, but is it a bit reckless to throw him into an away match against Liverpool? Hell no.

Arsenal‘s perfect start to the season hits its first major obstacle as we travel to Anfield to take on Liverpool. With a high-flying attack like the Reds have, it will be all hands on deck for the Gunners to replicate a touchline-to-touchline attack that can match it. And that involves throwing Nicolas Pepe in to the fire.

Arsenal have gradually been inching Pepe into the fray, but after giving him a hearty 45 minutes against Burnley, the feeling is just right that it’s time for him to start, even if he only gets 60-70 minutes.

The only other question is if you want his full debut to be in arguably the toughest match we’re going to face all season—away at Liverpool. To which I answer, hell yes you do.

There are a couple big perks here. The first being that, as mentioned, Pepe probably won’t face a tougher match all year. The only comparison is Manchester City at the Etihad, but that’s never filled me with the same feeling as Liverpool at Anfield.

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There’s actually a soul at Anfield.

Which means that even if Pepe tanks and has to be taken off at half, he’s only going to get better because the situation is only going to get better.

But he won’t tank because of reason No. 2. Liverpool may know a lot of Arsenal’s other weapons, but they don’t know Pepe. At least not that well. And that advantage of having an elite talent that opposing defenses don’t fully understand is invaluable. Even if the “not knowing” is short-lived, you should absolutely take advantage of it while you have it.

Pepe is the third most talented attacker on this team, with the other two easily filling themselves in. The best course of action is to trust your best talents in their best possible positions and let your tactics do the rest. So get Pepe out there, ignore the concerns that he might not be ready, and unleash this beast that the Reds will have to learn on the go against.

Baptisms by fire really do work. I talk about them all the time because rarely have I seen them fail. These are professional athletes, the less you baby them, the better off we’ll all be because of it.