Nicolas Pepe has admitted that he struggled to keep his confidence intact during his stuttering start to life at Arsenal but credited Unai Emery with keeping trust in him.
Emery’s faith was rewarded last night as two stunning free-kicks in the final 10 minutes secured a 3-2 win over Vitoria which, perhaps only briefly, alleviated the pressure building on the Arsenal head coach.
been under the microscope as he struggled to make the sort of impact that might have been expected from a player on whom Arsenal spent £72million, with his only goal prior to last night coming from the penalty spot in a similarly stirring comeback against Aston Villa.
During his struggles – and particularly after a woeful display away to Manchester United – Pepe had publicly admitted that his confidence had been knocked but Emery continued to back him both in public and private. The Arsenal head coach was eventually rewarded with a stirring display that, for 72 hours at least, took the focus away from his own struggles.
“The manager trusts me,” Pepe said. “Even if I hadn’t been decisive for a while, I always had the manager’s trust. It is always important to have the manager’s faith.
![[FILE] Liverpool’s Egyptian midfielder Mohamed Salah (L) runs with the ball as Arsenal’s Brazilian defender Gabriel closes in during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium in London. (Photo by Catherine Ivill / POOL / AFP)](https://www.afriupdate.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/000_97B779-scaled-e1703231851386-120x86.jpg "Liverpool host Arsenal in battle for Premier League Christmas No. 1 2")
“It was hard [to keep my confidence high]… Of course [I knew the Premier League would be harder].
“It is a league totally different to Ligue 1. With a different intensity. For me, I had to adapt quickly because expectations were high.
“Unfortunately, it is not what I did at the beginning but I have always had the manager’s trust and the players have supported me. I keep working hard to perform well and adapt to the Premier League.”
Arsenal have always insisted that they did not expect an immediate impact from Pepe, whose club record price tag they view as a reflection of his potential rather than his immediate worth.
Certainly it did not help the Ivorian’s adaptation to England that international duties denied him a chance to familiarise himself with Arsenal before the season began.
“I am not at my best physically because I didn’t have a proper pre-season like the others,” Pepe conceded. “I was at the Africa Cup of Nations.
“I started little by little and the manager knew about it. I am trying to work hard to be stronger physically to perform well.”
Pepe’s arrival was supposed to see him form a devastating attack trident with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette but so far the trio have featured in just three games together due to an ankle injury that sidelined the latter for nearly two months.
Lacazette made his first start since that injury last night but struggled greatly before being withdrawn for Pepe in the 75th minute. The Frenchman may not play against Crystal Palace on Sunday, when Aubameyang will be restored to the side, meaning the wait goes on for Arsenal’s dream front three to hit the remarkable heights they can reach together.
Pepe said: “We have played very little together [with Aubameyang and Lacazette], maybe just around 30 minutes. But we get on well, we all speak French. For us, it is to understand each other. I hope we will play more together.
“As soon as I arrived they helped me. I talked a lot to them. Matteo [Guendouzi] too. I also manage to talk to the other players because it is important to learn the language to communicate with everyone.
“The key is to have good people around you. I have my family here with me so I could be good mentally, especially when things are not going well. I rely a lot on them. For me, it was always going to be difficult to come here in the unknown, with a different language. So having my family with me is important.”
He added: “It’s not easy starting out here but I’m beginning to find my feet with the help of my team-mates. Doing better than last year means winning it, so that’s what we’ll try to do.”
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