Arteta hints that Pepe will start ahead of Aubameyang against Aston Villa
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has hinted that Nicolas Pepe will retain his spot in the starting lineup ahead of club captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the Gunners’ Premier League game against Aston Villa at Villa Park on Saturday.
The Ivorian attacker has flourished in the side over the last few games and has scored three goals in his last four starts in the league. He has filled in for Aubameyang over the last two weeks and has enjoyed some of his best performances in an Arsenal jersey.
He scored the North London side’s first goal against Southampton in the club’s 3-1 victory over the Saints and was the team’s most threatening player in the goalless draw against Manchester United at the Emirates.
He was at the heart of Arsenal’s sublime first half performance against Wolves before David Luiz’s red card changed the complexion of the game and led to the Gunners succumbing to a 2-1 defeat.
Arteta has made it clear that while Aubameyang is available for selection, he will choose to start the players who he believes are in the best form. On the back of his last few performances, it would be impossible to bench Pepe.
On whether Aubameyang is available, he said:
“Well he is available, he played a few minutes after 10 days of not doing much and hopefully in the next two days he feels good and he is available to contribute to the team.”
On the key to Pepe’s form, he said:
“Even when we made decisions not to play him, he kept working hard. He has improved in a lot of areas and has been much more consistent for 90 minutes. He’s a threat at the moment because he’s been scoring goals, he’s been assisting players, he’s been a real threat. He needs to continue doing that.”
On whether Pepe should be dropped in favour of Aubameyang, he said:
“At the end of the day, we have to play the players who are in the best form and everybody has to earn the right to play and participate in the games. That’s what everybody’s doing, pushing each other to raise the level. You can see that the level has been raised because everybody is playing at their best. There’s still room for improvement so everybody has to keep pushing.”
