Pain in the Arsenal
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Arsenal Vs Aston Villa: 5 key players to watch – The relentless Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

By Andrew Dowdeswell

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - AUGUST 11: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal celebrates after scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Arsenal FC at St. James Park on August 11, 2019 in Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - AUGUST 11: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal celebrates after scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Arsenal FC at St. James Park on August 11, 2019 in Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) /
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Arsenal, Nicolas Pepe
LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 01: Nicolas Pepe of Arsenal in action during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Tottenham Hotspur at Emirates Stadium on September 01, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images) /

3. Nicolas Pepe

Nicolas Pepe has it. Sometimes, when watching a player play, you do not need long to know that just have it, whatever that may actually be. And that was very much true for Pepe. From his very first touch of the season, you could see that he has the mindset and technical quality to be special.

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However, so far this campaign, it has just not happened for him. He has panicked in front of goal, at times, he has been unfortunate with mistimed finishes and miscued efforts, and, as a result, he is beginning to strive for success, which is becoming a detriment to his overall impact on matches.

Put very plainly, Pepe just needs to score. It doesn’t matter how. It could be a top corner screamer from 25 yards after beating three defenders or it could come off his knee after bouncing around the six-yard box. He just needs to get things going, because, with confidence, he has the skill set to truly set the Premier League alight.

At home to Aston Villa, then, is the ideal fixture in which Pepe could break his duck. He will surely see a lot of the ball. Arsenal should create a lot of opportunities. He could see three or four shooting chances. He just needs to take one. Because the longer this drought lasts, the more difficult it will be to break out of it.