Pepe’s Arsenal stint
Arsenal secured Nicolas Pepe’s services in the summer of 2019 for a club-record £72m.
Despite having an outstanding season the campaign prior with Lille, Pepe’s first year in England was pretty underwhelming.
The Ivorian struggled to hold down a regular starting spot last term, as well as failing to produce anywhere near the numbers we saw he is capable of with Lille.
2020/21 has seen a similar tale unfold for the 25-year-old.
Pepe has scored two and assisted two in just three Europa League outings so far this season.
In the Premier League, though, the story is very much different.
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 24: Nicolas Pepe of Arsenal during the UEFA Europa League group F match between Arsenal FC and Vitoria Guimaraes at Emirates Stadium on October 24, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Matthew Ashton – AMA/Getty Images)
Pepe wants to find a smile again
Pepe has featured in seven of the north Londoners’ eight league outings this season.
However, just one of those matches has seen Pepe handed a starting berth.
Now, with the international break upon us, Pepe has been voicing his frustration at his lack of playing time.
The winger even went as far as to claim he would like to play more in order to find a smile again:
“My goal is to play more. To have a little more playing time.
“A player who plays is happy. For me, I would like to play a little more to find a smile again.
“He (Arteta) wants me to be 100 per cent focused during the 90 minutes of the match. Afterwards, I see during training that I will be a substitute the following weekend.
“But the coach speaks to me, he also has assistants who are there for that. But it is frustrating for any player to be on the bench.
“A super-sub role? The coach makes his choices. It’s up to me to show him that I don’t have that role.”
Nicolas Pepe has admitted he is unhappy with his lack of playing time under Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) November 11, 2020
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