Thread by @nonewthing

Football is amazingly nuanced. In the mishmash of the game and with macro factors above macro factors, recorded events are not necessarily the best version of the truth.

Saying X Player did X number of this does not equal to a useful take. It only shows a basic take on the game.

A lot of our attack against Norwich was ran through Pepe. Anyone who has watched Liverpool or City or even Chelsea know that it is a different game if Mahrez, Salah, Hudson-Odoi see as much of the ball as Pepe did against Norwich.

He created a decent amount but that statistic is

not proportional with the amount of the ball, chances and situations that we had with him. A top forward produces more with so much. Even if you argue that what he created was proportionately sufficient for you (which I strongly disagree with seeing as he was indecisive), you

cannot argue about the amount of promising opportunities which he killed by his touches AND TURNED into opportunities for the opposition.

If Norwich had better outlets, there is every possibility we could have conceded from one of his bozo touches.

That is not acceptable.

The way we want to win is by sustaining pressure on our opponents. Pepe is like the Holding of our attackers in this regard.

Even the situation we eventually scored from was kept alive by Bukayo Saka receiving a hard through ball under pressure and not losing it on the turn.

Pepe cannot do that. At least consistently. It ruins what we are trying to do. It ruins what we are trying to be. It's like trying to paint a masterpiece and having one of the colors consistently peel off. It's maddening. It's infuriating. It's an artist's nightmare.

Pepe is a 72 million euro forward who almost can't

—Beat his man 1v1.
—Keep the ball rolling and smooth.
—Have a good first touch.
—Be efficient with possession.

How is that acceptable to anyone?

How is that acceptable at that price, age and time in the squad?

It doesn't matter that he mimes cutting in to shoot frequently. People seem to think that it means he has potential. That is an apparition: a mere after image of an inside-forward—not a true one.

He lacks dynamism, balance, acceleration over 5 meters, range of options, power and

confidence. That is not a true inside forward. That is a shadow.

That kind of display he had today against Norwich cannot continue. If it does, we'd barely be able to score a goal. For him to really succeed, he needs all conditions to be perfect for him. That's unfortunate.

He needs Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard constantly feeding him. He needs low pressure games. He needs to see a lot of the ball. He needs to be covered for his lack of technical security. He needs this; he needs that. That's a mess, everything considered. And it is time we stop

hoping and hoping.

The sooner we realize that we made a serious mistake with his signing, the better.

It is unfair to keep asking for us to make excuses for him. He cost so much and has played under two different coaches with two different teams in two different systems. When do we get to really see some of that 72 million back? Or should we just wait until his contract runs out?