Nicolas Pepe credits Arsenal manager Unai Emery for showing faith in him after the striker scores two stunning free-kicks coming off the bench to rescue Gunners with 3-2 win over Vitoria Guimaraes
Arsenal's Nicolas Pepe takes a free-kick to scores his team's second goal during their Europa League match against Vitoria Guimaraes at the Emirates Stadium on Thursday. Pic/AFP
Paris: Nicolas Pepe came off the bench to rescue Arsenal at home against Vitoria Guimaraes with two late free-kicks in the Europa League on Thursday. Arsenal came from behind to win 3-2 and stay perfect in Group 'F'. They are one of only two teams on nine points from three games, along with Sevilla, who beat Dudelange of Luxembourg 3-0 in Group 'A'.
Manchester United are one of the teams on seven points and need just one more win to ensure they qualify from Group 'L' after eking out a 1-0 win against Partizan on an emotional day in Belgrade. Celtic came from a goal down to beat Lazio 2-1 in Glasgow and remain top of Group 'E'. PSV Eindhoven were held 0-0 at home by Linz but still lead Group 'D' Rangers drew 1-1 in Porto in Group 'G' while Wolves beat Slovan 2-1 in Bratislava in Group 'K' and both are in contention.
At the Emirates, Arsenal made 10 changes from the team that lost at Sheffield United on Monday in the Premier League. For much of the match, they looked even worse. Arsenal dominated possession but were outshot 14-11. They made the worst possible start, falling behind after nine minutes to a goal by a former Tottenham player. In the ninth minute, Marcus Edwards, once compared by Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino to a young Lionel Messi, fired a shot under Emiliano Martinez.
Unai Emery
Brazilian teenager Gabriel Martinelli replied with a header but Vitoria regained the lead before half time with a goal from Bruno Duarte. With Arsenal's young strikers struggling, Pepe, who had not yet scored a goal from open play for the Gunners, came on in the 64th minute. After 80 minutes he curled a free-kick inside the far post. He repeated the trick three minutes into added time to secure the victory.
"It's important for Pepe," said Arsenal manager Unai Emery of his big summer signing. "He can gain confidence from tonight. When he scores it's good for him and the team." Speaking to Sky Sports, Pepe said: "The manager trusts me. 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.
"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."
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