Arsenal: You know what the best part about Nicolas Pepe is?

Nicolas Pep bagged a goal on international break, but for Arsenal, he’s still struggling. But that brings me to the best part of the whole shebang.

In case you’ve been in a coma for the past three months, you might have missed all of the unabashed criticism directed towards Nicolas Pepe and his sputtering career at Arsenal. You know, since three months is an appropriate amount of time with which to judge a person’s time after coming over from a much weaker league.

Maybe Matteo Guendouzi has made this harder on Pepe, since Guendouzi was a stud right from the off, who knows. But whatever the case, there is one bit of really good news about Nicolas Pepe, and you know what that is?

We haven’t seen the best of him yet and we’re still in third place, miles ahead of Manchester United and Tottenham. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is in the Golden Boot race, Bukayo Saka is better than we could have imagined and midweek competitions looks like a walk in the park.

Pepe is struggling to get started, and that’s making the news that he scored for the Ivory Coast on international duty more of a mixed bag. If he can do it there, why can’t he with us?

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

It’s the old Mesut Ozil question. Why does he perform internationally and not at home. The answer for that I will probably never know, but the answer to Pepe? Time.

So yeah, Pepe hasn’t hit his best, and yeah Pepe is in danger of losing his starting role to someone 18-years-old and, for all intents and purposes, of superior talent. And that’s a good thing. That is such a good thing. Because you don’t spend that much money on someone and then just give up on them. You spend that much money over that much time because you believe that in those five years, you will have a guy worthy of your time and money.

Pepe isn’t at his peak, he isn’t his usual self, but the team is fighting and clawing and strangely enough, succeeding. Which means when Pepe does click, when we do see the best of him, the club will be in even better shape than they currently are.

So next time you feel annoyed by Pepe’s inability to finish, just remind yourself that the best is yet to come. Hell, the good is yet to come. And needless to say, that’s a good thing.