Arsenal: Nicolas Pepe’s horizon could change very soon

Believe it or not, Arsenal’s most dangerous attacker right now is Nicolas Pepe. Which is why I was surprised to see him left out last time. You’re up, Mikel Arteta.

Nicolas Pepe picked the worst season to come to Arsenal. No doubt he came here with hopes of stability and Champions League football and what he’s gotten instead is three managers, several benchings, fan displeasure and mid-table monotony.

As our most expensive signing ever, there is a lot expected from the Ivorian winger, but lately, he’s been getting into form. He is one of the few guys out there who consistently has ideas. He’s willing to try new things and he always fights for the ball. Not a lot of people can say any of that, but he can proudly say all of it.

As such, I was a little surprised to see him left out against Everton. I loved the youth approach, but Pepe is now our chief creative force and we were lacking without him. We are often lacking with him as well, but I digress.

Unai Emery did the right thing with Pepe. He sat him when things got rough and reinstated him when things got better.

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Freddie Ljungberg was more of a wildcard. I don’t think he was sure what approach to take, and that was evidenced by the Everton absence. But now it’s up to Mikel Arteta, and that being the case, I can only say that I hope he has a plan for Pepe.

Of course he does, because Arteta is a thinker. But I hope that there is a priority to establish Pepe as the force he needs to be. Because Pepe has that ability to be a guy we count on in the transition stages.

As drama and rumors circle Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette, this attack is falling to pieces. We may be losing three of our highest-earners (add in Mesut Ozil) in the next couple of months and starting from youth and new signings.

At that point, Pepe’s position completely changes. He isn’t the new guy anymore, he’ll quickly become the old guy. The guy that needs to be counted on to usher in this new era. So the sooner Arteta can get him into that mindset, the better.

As a general rule of thumb, the more goals he gets, the more he’ll get into that perspective. So there’s always that.