Arsenal: The most important Nicolas Pepe stat

Nicolas Pepe has no goals and just one assist so far this season. But that does not mean Arsenal’s record signing has not had an impact, and there is one statistic above all else that proves it.

As the modern game has rapidly evolved over the past five years, ‘ball progression’ has become an increasingly crucial aspect of an individual’s impact on a match. Whether it be through line-breaking passes that move play up the field or via dribbling past defenders and releasing pressure, having players who can progress the ball from one third to the other is vital to any successful team.

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Arsenal have plenty of players who can progress the ball through their passing. Granit Xhaka, for all of his faults, is usually a good forward passer. Matteo Guendouzi is the same. Mesut Ozil can drop deep and move the play into the attacking third, while adding David Luiz at centre-half includes another excellent deep distributor.

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However, they have lacked an individual to dribble the ball into attacking areas, either from full-back or in the wide areas, or in central midfield. Santi Cazorla was superb at this, especially as he dropped deeper into a box-to-box role, while Alexis Sanchez, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all moved the play forwards through dribbling. None of these players were at the club last season.

But this season, that has changed, first with the inclusion of Dani Ceballos and later with club-record signing Nicolas Pepe. Both are superb dribblers; Ceballos is a wrigglier individual who slaloms his way past would-be tacklers, while Pepe possesses more speed and explosion to drive through gaps and dribble forwards with speed and purpose. Much has been made of Ceballos’ skilful qualities, but Pepe is equally as dynamic and impactful with the ball at his feet, and the stats bear it out.

Pepe is the only Arsenal player ranked in the top 15 in the Premier League for ‘progressive runs’, which are defined by WyScout as dribbles that progress the play by moving the ball into more advanced zones. He has 4.7 progressive runs per 90 minutes, fourth in the league. With 5.5 completed dribbles per 90 minutes, he also has the highest number of successful dribbles per 90 minutes of any player in the Premier League who has played more than 90 minutes.

Although Pepe may not yet have a goal and only one assist, which was a relatively simple pass and was the byproduct of some excellent play by Alexandre Lacazette, he is still having an impact on matches. He is progressing play, holding off challengers, protecting the ball, and moving Arsenal up the pitch.

These are an oft-overlooked aspect of an individual’s performance. They are difficult to quantify with statistics and they are not easily memorable, unlike a flashing strike into the top corner or delicious through pass or cross. But they are hugely important to the team, breaking free of the high press, creating space for others by demanding attention, and helping preserve possession.

Obviously, Arsenal signed Pepe to score goals and create chances. But they also need him to beat defenders, progress play through his dribbling, and mould them into a team better suited to the modern game. And thus far, he is doing precisely that.