Arsenal vs Southampton: 4 Things We Learned From Stirring Comeback

Praise Be Nicolas Pepe

Three minutes in and the broken record that is Pepe’s Arsenal career had seemingly wound back to track one.

Sleeping on the edge of the box he allowed Stuart Armstrong to run in and, superbly, it must be said, latch onto a neat corner routine. Still, not an excuse for a lack of concentration.

Expecting Pepe to retreat into his shell and resort to attempting the same movement on the full-back 12 times over to no avail, instead he assumed responsibility, took initiative, and has his best Premier League display of the season. By quite some distance.

Out of possession was where he impressed most. His seven ball recoveries were joint-highest alongside Emile Smith Rowe, while another area of his display went unnoticed.

Bernd Leno went long on a few occasions during the match, of which Pepe won seven headers. That 71.4% success rate is surprising, mainly considering it’s not a strong aspect of his. Furthermore, he’s the same height as Yan Valery who was marking him all night.

It boils down to the determination he showed in running off the ball towards both ends of the pitch, and the confidence he gained from his well-taken goal. Tactically the match suited him perfectly, hence Arteta’s decision to field him on the left and to even start him at all.

Well done the manager choosing the right personnel for the occasion, and well done Pepe for taking his opportunity.