JAKARTA - Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said he was satisfied with the reaction of Nicolas Pepe who paid for his mistake by performing brilliantly when the Gunners crushed Molde 3-0 in Group B of the Europa League at Aker Stadium, Norweiga, Thursday local time (Friday WIB).
Not only because Pepe also scored one goal in Arsenal's victory, but Arteta considered the Ivorian winger to play almost flawlessly for the full 90 minutes.
This appearance was like a place for Pepe to pay off his mistakes after being rewarded with a red card in the Premier League match against Leeds United last weekend for gore in the face of a defender against Ezgjan Alioski.
"Humans can make mistakes and make them go through difficult times. The important thing is how they react next," Arteta said after the match quoted by Antara from the official UEFA website.
"You can see Nico's body language from the first second that he is in the right shape. He's doing well," he added.
Pepe had hit Molde's crossbar in the 48th minute before successfully opening Arsenal's lead two minutes later.
Then Reiss Nelson doubled Arsenal's lead in the 55th minute before young talent Folarin Balogun scored his debut goal seven minutes from time to complete the 3-0 win over Molde.
Pepe's performance was also praised by former Arsenal defender Martin Keown and former England midfielder Owen Hargreaves who served as match manager on BT Sport TV station.
"Pepe finds his favorite shooting range, he likes to stab from the right side before shooting with his left foot," said Keown.
"Today, Pepe put himself in a better position and looked brilliant. Arteta should be delighted by the performance," said Hargreaves.
Pepe's glories coincide with Arsenal's certainty of qualifying for the last 32 of the Europa League as Group B standings leader with a full 12 points collection.
Arsenal next host Rapid Wien at the Emirates on Thursday (3/12) next week, but four days earlier featured in the Premier League tie against Wolverhampton in an attempt to return to winning ways after two games without a win.
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