Arsenal: How Joe Willock, Hector Bellerin crucial to Nicolas Pepe

It has been a difficult start to his Arsenal career for Nicolas Pepe. But the return of Hector Bellerin and continued rise of Joe Willock could be crucial to a resurgence. Here is why.

It would be a little naive and blind to say that new Arsenal star Nicolas Pepe has lived up to his expectations. Signed for a club-record £72 million. Arriving after a 20-plus goal and 10-plus assist season, the only player not named Lionel Messi to do so in a top-five European league. There was a great degree of anticipation.

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Pepe has not been completely lacking in moments. He has one goal and two assists. There have been some driving, direct dribbles. He has produced fleeting glimpses of his undeniable ability. But things have been difficult, awkward, challenging thus far.

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However, despite his troubles, Pepe has not exactly had the support to help him flourish. Often facing two or three defenders every time he receives the ball, with little attacking creativity or spark alongside him, there has been an obvious and hampering burden thrust onto his shoulders to consistently make something happen from nothing. He is not being put into the best positions to truly hurt the opposition.

Explosive, direct dribblers who like to drive at defenders and burst through opposing defences, with and without the ball, require space to thrive. When faced with a compact unit that congests the space in behind the first defender, it becomes extremely difficult to dribble past and through. Combination play becomes very tight, meaning that it has to be extremely precise, and thereby more difficult, while defenders feel confident to commit to challenges, knowing they have support close behind them.

So far this season, these are the situations that Pepe has been faced with time and time again. There has been no space, no opportunity, no exposed defenders to burst by. And so, when he receives the ball, he either is forced to play a backwards pass and invite pressure onto the team or must attempt something sensational, oftentimes losing possession in the process.

Pepe needs space. And space is created by movement, on and off the ball. Defenders have to respect the runs of the opposition. If a midfielder darts beyond a striker and in behind the defence, the closest defender has a decision to make: step up and play offside or drop with the run. Whichever they chose creates space. Now imagine three or four players, all making different runs, one of which has the ball. Suddenly, you can see the confusion that would ensure and the space that would be created as a result. For Pepe to thrive, he needs runners.

In Joe Willock and Hector Bellerin, Arsenal have two highly mobile players who can aid Pepe immensely. Willock is an athletic midfielder who drives forward with purpose when on the ball and knows how to drag defenders away with his runs off the ball. Bellerin, meanwhile, is a speedy right-back, consistently bombing on overlapping runs, thus forcing the defence to shift over and engineering space for Pepe to dive inside on his left foot. These are the types of players that Pepe needs to flourish, not the stationary, turgid play that Arsenal are currently conducting.

It remains to be seen how Emery will use Bellerin and Willock this season. The former is a starter when fit but his return from an ACL tear will slow down the process. He is still gaining match sharpness and it could take several weeks for him to be ready for regular starts. Willock, meanwhile, is only 20 and is not yet fully trusted as a full-time starter. Perhaps Willock can alter that this season, but Emery seems insistent on starting Granit Xhaka, and that does not look like it will change any time soon.

Irrespective of their availability and usage, Pepe requires movement and dynamism off the ball. And without Willock and Bellerin, Arsenal lack it. Perhaps, then, it is time for Emery to aid his star signing and not just wait to be bailed out.