Arsenal: Two positives and two negatives from season so far

Negative 2: Nicolas Pepe

Nicolas Pepe has not lived up to expectations. At times, he looks like he could tear the league apart. He is tall, silky, skilful, explosive, and has an excellent left foot. But in the vast majority of games, he is oh so frustrating.

It baffled me a couple of weeks ago when Mikel Arteta said that he was going to have to teach Pepe to be a winger. He has played the position all his life and cost £72 million. Surely teaching the basic tenets of the position is not necessary. It says a lot when the majority of fans would prefer to see a teenager start in place of him and a player playing out of a position at left-back has more assists.

The talent is still there, and there is no reason to sell just yet. His final ball leaves a lot to be desired and his positioning and decision-making are poor. But those issues are fixable, especially if Arteta proves his coaching nous.

But if Pepe wants to avoid being known as a big-money flop, he needs to buck up his ideas and improve his performances. Because so far, he has not been good enough.