Just days after leaving Arsenal on loan, Nicolas Pepe has made his first appearance in OGC Nice colours after being handed a debut in their Ligue 1 clash against Marseille.
On Thursday evening, the Gunners' £72m-club record signing's return to France was announced and the following day Mikel Arteta opened up on the decision to let the Ivory Coast international depart - albeit temporarily: "It's been three years and he some good moments, some others where he hasn’t really contributed much in terms of minutes. We decided for every party it was the best decision to allow him to go. He needs to play football."
Early signs suggest Pepe will get regular minutes at the Allianz Riviera as he was thrown straight into the Nice starting line-up for their league meeting with Marseille and football.london kept close tabs on the winger in a game that had a heavy Arsenal influence across both squads.
READ MORE: What Mikel Arteta did to Takehiro Tomiyasu after Gabriel Magalhaes' winner for Arsenal vs Fulham
0-15
Lining up on the right-hand side of Nice's attack, Pepe was up against fellow Arsenal loanee Nuno Tavares in what promised to be an interesting head-to-head battle if he could isolate the Portugal u21 international in a 1v1 situation, whilst former Gunner Sead Kolasinac offered extra protection down that flank as he was the left-sided defender in Marseille's back three.
A sight that will interest many Arsenal supporters as Pepe shared a brief exchange with Kolasinac, Tavares and Matteo Guendouzi in the tunnel before kick-off, and then has a word with compatriot Eric Bailly who started on the bench for Marseille after signing on loan from Manchester United.
Pepe was straight into the action inside two minutes, showing great tenacity to regain possession after being brushed off the ball by Kolasinac as he tackled Dimitri Payet which drew applause from the home supporters and he then won two fouls in quick succession from his former teammate who was getting tight to him.
Momentarily operating down the middle in an attempt to link the play, Pepe's Nice debut got off to a bad start as Alexis Sanchez - another former Arsenal player - breaks the deadlock with his first Marseille goal in the 10th minute.
16-30
Leading the charge as Nice searched for an equaliser, Pepe sent a dangerous cross into the box from which Marseille struggled to deal with initially and then saw an effort blocked just before the half-hour mark as the ball fell kindly to him just outside the area.
31-45
A very difficult period for Pepe as Nice struggled to get him in the game and matters were compounded with two goals for the visitors before the break and Tavares was involved in both as he doubled Marseille's lead with a right-footed shot that crept in at Kasper Schmeichel's near post and before seeing another attempt spilt into Sanchez's path who made it 3-0.
Pepe did show a moment of brilliance as he twisted and turned past Leonardo Balredi but his end product was poor as he failed to pick out Andy Delort in the middle. With that said, the 27-year-old's delivery from two corners was better as they caused issues for the Marseille defence.
46-60
A quiet start to the second half for Pepe and that's despite a double change by Nice at the break with another former Arsenal player in Aaron Ramsey being introduced in an attempt to find that attacking spark. Pepe did manage to isolate Tavares in a 1v1 situation but was thwarted on this occasion and he forced Pau Lopez into a save with an effort that lacked any power.
61-75
Aside from winning a free-kick in a promising area - from which Nice wasted - Pepe was largely a frustrated figure during this period as Marseille dominated possession and on the rare occasion when the hosts did have the ball most of their attacks were focused down the left-hand side.
76-90
Much better from Pepe as he looked the most likely player to pull one back for Nice. Had one of his trademark curling efforts from just outside the area charged down, then had another effort deflected away for a corner before stretching to head the ball over the bar and then sending a free-kick into the wall.
Verdict:
It was undoubtedly a very frustrating debut for Nicolas Pepe as despite showing flashes of what he's capable of, he just wasn't able to exploit the space in behind the Marseille defence and a lot of that was down to the ball not being played quickly enough to him, although on the occasion where he was in a good position there was no end product.
With that said, there is reason for encouragement ahead of his return to former club Lille next weekend as he combined well with Youcef Atal down the right when the Algerian came on in the second half and it will be interesting to see how that partnership develops over the course of the season.
But ultimately Pepe's Nice debut will be remembered for Nuno Tavares - a current Arsenal player - and Alexis Sanchez - a former Arsenal favourite - helping Marseille to a 3-0 win.
READ NEXT:
- Why Martin Odegaard shouted at Kieran Tierney as Mikel Arteta hails Arsenal's maturity
- Why Odegaard shouted at Saliba as Mitrovic winds up the Arsenal fans: Moments missed vs Fulham
- Arsenal player ratings vs Fulham as Odegaard talismanic, Gabriel atones for error, Tierney poor
- Arsenal transfer business under the microscope in 'good deal' or 'bad deal'
Mikel Arteta 'plan B' begs major transfer question Edu and Stan Kroenke must answer this summer
