Ricardo Pepi’s week started with the American forward playing with Jong PSV and ended with the forward scoring an insurance goal in Eredivisie play.
Pepi came off the bench to score his sixth goal of the season as PSV defeated Heerenveen 2-0 on home soil. The U.S. men’s national team striker came off the bench in the 76th minute and scored PSV’s insurance goal just two minutes later.
The home result moved PSV to 15-0-0 in Eredivisie action, earning a perfect 45 points out of 45 to begin the league season.
Guus Til’s opening goal for PSV came in the 33rd minute, giving Peter Bosz’s squad a 1-0 advantage.
Although he didn’t start the match, Pepi made an instant impact off the bench, like he’s done on numerous occasions this season. Pepi’s right-footed shot off a Joey Veerman assist nestled into the bottom-right corner for a 2-0 lead that PSV would not let slip away.
It marked Pepi’s fourth league goal of the season and second in his last four overall appearances.
Fellow USMNT teammates Sergino Dest and Malik Tillman both started and logged 90 minutes apiece in the triumph. Dest has remained a regular starter at full back while Tillman has been in-and-out of the starting lineup this season.
PSV is off from league play this weekend before hosting Arsenal in its final UEFA Champions League group stage match on Dec. 12.
Only since you mentioned Tillman, he did have an assist in the first goal.
I thought he did too, but not per the stat-sheet
Not to be the “hard on the kid guy”, but he really should have scored another one. He had another excellent chance he pushed wide. A good chance squared up to the ball for a shot from 12 yards out where a defender who was two yards away blocked it. Could have done more there. Not as nearly as good as the one he missed, but plenty of time, separation and he was planted/not off balance. Last wasn’t a very good chance, but he was not aggressive enough on a rebound of a header which the keeper flubbed and the smacked away from him. He needed to anticipate more IMO, and make his thrust decisive, but he was a bit passive. That one really is debatable on how you want to read it. Not that big of a deal. The other two were real good Number 9 chances and would have literally doubled the point made. Still great to see.
The continued maturation of this player is a beautiful sight to behold.
The confidence displayed and the execution on the finish were great. That said, it has to be mentioned, his opportunity came as a result of a very bad defensive miscue by the opposing defender.
His goal today, beckons the question…Peter Bosz…Earnie Stewart…what does this guy need to do to get a start???
I will add this, for young players aspiring to be a professional in Europe, let the journey that Ricardo Pepi is currently on serve as a clear example of how hard it is to “make it” as a professional in Europe. It not only takes skill, but more importantly, self-belief, commitment, focus, sacrifice, patience, perseverance, consistent production, and luck ( in not getting injured, etc. )…and even with all of that, you still might not get a start in the Eredivisie.
“His goal today, beckons the question…Peter Bosz…Earnie Stewart…what does this guy need to do to get a start???”
That’s easy. It’s a matter of context. He has to do better than the guy in front of him, the guy that Earnie bought Pepi to learn from.
Unlike the USMNT, PSV has a lot of very capable players
Luuk De Jong
Eredivisie · PSV · 2023-24
Matches
15
Goals
10
Assists
6
Yellow cards
1
For some reason a lot of people on SBI think that Americans are supposed to go to Europe and after a little prep time take over their team. And if it doesn’t happen it’s because of some anti-American bias. This on a team with an American technical director or whatever Earnie’s job title is, plus three, count em, three “Murican” internationals although two of them are just passport Americans and have the wrong accent.
I don’t doubt that there is some form of bias everywhere in football.. For example if you’re Brazilian you’re already typecast ,even though I’ve seen a fair number of pretty mediocre Brazilian soccer players in Europe and elsewhere.
It turns out there are a lot of really good soccer players in Europe.
Very clearly, when PSV look at Ricardo they see big Euro signs in their eyes. Ricardo should thank God for Earnie. Ricardo is free to develop at his own pace without the pressure of having to carry the scoring load because big Luuk is around. We’ll never know but does anyone, even Gregg, still think that Jesus was a better experimental choice for Qatar than Ricardo might have been?
de Jong has played 425 first team games in the Eredivisie, Bundesliga, EPL and La Liga compared to 111 games in MLS, Bundesliga and the Eredivisie for Ricardo. PSV has a good thing going with those two and will probably ride it for all it’s worth until de Jong wears down and Ricardo becomes completely unstoppable.
Vacqui,
You bring up great points.
Allow me to be crystal clear…I’m not saying Pepi should be the everyday starter, but more so, he has EARNED a start…singular…which has not happened, as of yet.
You shared de Jong’s stats for this season’s Eredivisie…which translate to 1,181 minutes played. Pepi’s stats for the same…12 matches, 4 goals, 1 assist, and 2 yellows…in 169 minutes played. I’m not the guy that believes stats tell the whole story, nor do I believe in extrapolating out the math to say if Pepi played the same minutes as de Jong, he would have scored 28 goals, but in addition to the aforementioned stats, Pepi has passed the “eye test” and he has earned a singular start.
“For some reason a lot of people on SBI think that Americans are supposed to go to Europe and after a little prep time take over their team.”…I agree with this statement, but I am definitely not one of those people. You have to earn your stripes and starts. Again, Pepi has done that. Ultimately, what a club, coach, and teammates want, is a player that can help them win. Pepi has shown he can do that by doing his job, which is to score goals, amongst other things.
Also, I agree, biases exist, not only in European soccer, but in all aspects of life, but make no mistake about it, I’m not saying that a bias exists against Pepi because he is American. On the contrary, his performances are the legitimate and objective measure which illustrate that he has earned a start.
“It turns out there are a lot of really good soccer players in Europe.” Respectfully, that statement needs to be amended and amplified…there are really good soccer players EVERYWHERE on this Earth. For example, Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf, Aron Winter, and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, were all born in Suriname. Those are gems most of us know…there are more out there that never “made it” that are just as good, if not, better, than the aforementioned.
Your second to last paragraph is spot on, but part of the development process is to start (singular ), once you have earned it. Pepi has done so. And no, we all know Berhalter was a clown for choosing Ferreira over Pepi for the WC roster.
Your last paragraph is also spot on, but I will add, professional soccer is all about performance and winning…right now. De Jong’s soccer resume, nor Pepi’s, does not drive current playing time. Given Pepi’s performance, he has earned a start.
It’s time for Pepi to get more run, including a start…singular. 🙂
Papi Grande,
“Given Pepi’s performance, he has earned a start…It’s time for Pepi to get more run, including a start…singular. ”
And if you were the manager he’d be given a start.
But you’re not the manager. And Boaz appears to like things just the way they are.
As you say, stats don’t tell the whole story.
Good teams are a reflection of the interaction between the manager and the players. In the good teams there is a certain chemistry there that outsiders may not understand, because they are outsiders.
All of us on SBI are outsiders to the PSV locker room.
And right now what appears to be working for PSV is de Jong starting and Pepi subbing in.
de Jong has 10 goals and Pepi 4. It’s hard to argue with 14 goals from the position.
Can you guarantee that if de Jong was subbing in and Pepi was starting that the they would still have 14 combined goals?
In other words, it’s not broke , why are you fixing it?
I get you prefer Pepi but he has done nothing to usurp de Jong, who , I repeat, has scored over twice as many goals as Pepi. Ricardo has proven that he and de Jong make a great combo. But he hasn’t proven that he’s a better starter. I have little doubt that, all things being equal, Ricardo will eventually replace de Jong but I see no need to rush the process just to please impatient American fans. Boaz is not employed to develop players for the USMNT.
Ricardo is playing free and easy now, in part because he has that chip on the shoulder thing going. Starting is not te same as subbing in. The dynamic is different and it can change things ,maybe for better , maybe for worse.
If you are Boaz, why mess with it? de Jong or Pepi, one of them or maybe both are going to cool off soon enough, If I am Boaz, I’d worry about shaking things up then.
On the other hand your perspective is for Pepi. You want him starting and scoring lots of goals, screw PSV and de Jong
Pepi’s interests and the team’s interests are not always congruent.
“two of them are just passport Americans and have the wrong accent”
Are we still doing this?
This exclusionary jingoistic rhetoric is still en vogue around here?
SMDH
Vacqui,
Let’s go back to what I initially asked, “what does this guy need to do to get a start?”
With that in mind, we may have to agree, to disagree, on the answer to that.
It’s important to add, in your last reply, you are projecting a lot on me and putting words in my mouth.
But in closing, I”ll share the following:
“Given Pepi’s performance, he has earned a start…It’s time for Pepi to get more run, including a start…singular. ”
And if you were the manager he’d be given a start.
But you’re not the manager. And Boaz appears to like things just the way they are.
As you say, stats don’t tell the whole story.
Good teams are a reflection of the interaction between the manager and the players. In the good teams there is a certain chemistry there that outsiders may not understand, because they are outsiders.
All of us on SBI are outsiders to the PSV locker room.
And right now what appears to be working for PSV is de Jong starting and Pepi subbing in.
de Jong has 10 goals and Pepi 4. It’s hard to argue with 14 goals from the position.
Can you guarantee that if de Jong was subbing in and Pepi was starting that the they would still have 14 combined goals?
— – REPLY – Can you guarantee that if de Jong was subbing in and Pepi was starting that they WOU:LDN’T HAVE MORE THAN 14 combined goals?
In other words, it’s not broke , why are you fixing it?
I get you prefer Pepi but he has done nothing to usurp de Jong, who , I repeat, has scored over twice as many goals as Pepi. Ricardo has proven that he and de Jong make a great combo. But he hasn’t proven that he’s a better starter. I have little doubt that, all things being equal, Ricardo will eventually replace de Jong but I see no need to rush the process just to please impatient American fans. Boaz is not employed to develop players for the USMNT.
— REPLY – I never said I prefer Pepi. I said he has proven that he can help the team and has earned a start. Nothing more, nothing less.
— REPLY – “YOU see no need to rush the process”…the Eredivisie is 15 games into the season. If Pepi were to get a start tomorrow, who says that is “rushing the process?” That is the logic YOU are using to define “rushing this process.”
— REPLY – As an outsider yourself, do you know what the development process, strategy, and corresponding timeline, is for Pepi to get a start? So, again, I ask, who says that is “rushing the process?”
— REPLY – There is one thing that is certain and indisputable. In professional soccer, you earn opportunities…nothing is given. First, you earn them in practice, and that gets you on the bench….then, when you are on the bench, you continue to work hard and perform in practice and that earns a sub appearance…then if you perform as a sub, you earn a start…then if you perform in a start, you become the incumbent. This I’m certain of.
Ricardo is playing free and easy now, in part because he has that chip on the shoulder thing going. Starting is not te same as subbing in. The dynamic is different and it can change things ,maybe for better , maybe for worse.
If you are Boaz, why mess with it? de Jong or Pepi, one of them or maybe both are going to cool off soon enough, If I am Boaz, I’d worry about shaking things up then.
— REPLY – If I’m Bosz, I “mess with it” and pick the right situation to start Pepi because he has EARNED it and to rest de Jong’s body and let him know that he MUST keep performing. If you are Bosz, and want to wait until “one of them cools or maybe both…cool off,” so be it…tomato, tomatoe.
On the other hand your perspective is for Pepi. You want him starting and scoring lots of goals, screw PSV and de Jong
Pepi’s interests and the team’s interests are not always congruent.
— REPLY – I never said my perspective was FOR Pepi and screw PSV or de Jong. Your projecting that on me / putting words in my mouth,
Pepi’s interests and the team’s interests are not always congruent.
— I would argue that in this case Pepi’s interests and PSV’s interests are congruent, which is why he has worked hard, and in doing so, earned a start, which I believe would allow him to continue to helping the team win, including scoring goals.
You did say something that’s common belief among Americans that I would quibble with…namely, the perception that the Dutch league is tougher than MLS. The money says it isn’t…if you look at spending the Dutch league (and the similarly-regarded Portuguese league) are actually well below the Championship, Turkey…andMLS (which are all roughly on a level) except at the very top. Ajax and PSV have €30+ million (many years Ajax spends €40+ million) budgets, Feyanoord and AZ Almaar spend about what MLS teams do (in the $10-$25 million range)…and then it drops off a cliff. Heerenveen’s payroll this year is €4.7 million, which translates to right at $5 million…which would be dead-last in MLS by a mile, and it’s less than half what a typical MLS team spends.
PSV is a good squad, no doubt. Better than MLS. But they’re playing palookas.
European leagues are lopsided to an extent Americans would never tolerate. The Dutch league is particularly lopsided…yes, PSV and Ajax spend more than any MLS squad except Miami-with-Messi, but most of the league is not good. At all. Which is why Pepi struggles to get starts with PSV, but then bangs in goals for fun once he gets into games and did even when he was on loan with now-relegated Groningen. Pepi was a very good MLS player playing against teams not as good as what he was used to facing. There is a reason PSV is 15-0-0 and has yet to drop a point, and hey, there’s Feyanoord at #2 and AZ at #3. (Not sure what’s up with Ajax this year, they’re only sixth at the moment, behind the “Go Ahead Eagles”, I kid you not.)
Quozzel,
You bring up great points with the monetary information used to compare leagues, but respectfully, the technical level in the Eredivisie is ahead of that in MLS. The flip side is, defending is optional in the Eredivisie, where as in MLS, there higher level of defending.
Palookas has me LMAO!…funny shit! 🙂
I won’t disagree with your last paragraph, but there are plenty of palookas in MLS, too. Namely, the Chicago Fire, Toronto FC, Colorado Rapids, and pre-Messi and friends, Inter Miami.
Papi-
I do look at the Eredivisie – and what limited games I’ve watched (not many) of the Portuguese League – and I do see a very technical, tactically sophisticated league. I think this reflects the density of teams and youth academies on the ground in Europe, and these are old organizations, that have decades or even as much as a century-plus of experience with the game. They have very developed academies and they’ve been doing it a long time…and that matters. But there’s only so many athletes in a population, too…and I see a bunch of B-tier athletes in the Eredivisie that simply would not be able to cut it in MLS either. I think the reason “defending is optional” in the Dutch league comes down to that. You watch the likes of Dest or Tillman just jogging through guys in film over and and over again, and while Pepi made a great finish there he also had ample time to line up his shot before he was closed down. I don’t know if he gets that time in MLS.
And yeah, there are some bad squads in MLS every year, granted. Lack of relegation does seem to curb motivation at the bottom; there’s no penalty for tanking. But on the flip side, it’s been my opinion for awhile MLS is drawing from a far more under-served pool than the Euro squads are. $200K buys you one heck of a Central or South American soccer player. Liga MX used to get first pick of those guys but that is no longer true. MLS now has more money per squad available than Liga MX does…and soccernomics do matter.
Regardless, MLS has largely pulled even with the English Championship, and the progression has been meteoric. The MLS of today is not the MLS of even five years ago. The league spent $400+ million in salaries last year; when Beckham joined LA in 2007 it spent just $38 million total – and Golden Balls got more than $5 million of that himself. In another five years MLS will be well past the Championship, IMHO, and breathing down the neck of Ligue 1.
quozzel,
“You did say something that’s common belief among Americans that I would quibble with…namely, the perception that the Dutch league is tougher than MLS.”
Just because you are a success in one league, it doesn’t mean you can translate that success to another league. However much tougher the Eredivisie is than MLS , or not, that’s probably the least of a players worries. However much better (or not) the players are in Holland, playing in MLS is different from playing in the Eredivisie.
You like to point out how expensive Djorde was. That tells me that AZ would not have spent the money on him if they thought he was not capable of making that jump. And right now the jury is still out on him.
Forget about soccer, speaking from personal experience, working abroad is hard for anyone.
The success of an American kid in the Netherlands is pretty much a case by case basis.
If you’re talking about an American living in the US of A and then having to go directly to the Netherlands that’s one thing. Michael Bradley or Juan Agudelo, for example.
Or you can be Pepi and have the interim step of going to the BL first and then going to Groningen then PSV.
Or you can go over there even younger and then work your way up the ladder, which is what Jon O Brien did so long ago and of course Dest did even more recently by being born there.
Having more time to acclimate and get used to the differences seems to be the better way to go. The people at AZ and PSV have forgotten more about talent evaluation than I will ever know.
I’m confident that any American they bring in from MLS or wherever has the requisite talent.
But what they can’t predict is how well that person will settle in the Eredivisie. Pepi had the benefit of that interim stay in Augsburg to help him get used to not being in MLS anymore.
Historically, the Dutch / Eredivisie is more about technique and tactics, in that order, versus the MLS having more of an “athletic element” to it, which is why you may see what you perceive as B-tier athletes sprinkled throughout the Eredivisie. The “athletic element” in MLS is a result of the number of players coming from college soccer, but that is changing.
To your point, that Pepi may not find the same amount of time on the ball in MLS vs the Eredivisie…while that may be true, Vacqui brings up a valid point…success in one league does not automatically translate to another league. That said, I believe Pepi has proven to be a success in both leagues.
I hear you in regards to MLS pulling players from Central and South America, but the Dutch / Eredivisie no not need to do that because they have a plethora of viable options right there in their backyard and to your point of soccereconomics mattering, those kids in their back yard are cheaper to develop out of their own academy versus MLS paying $200k for Central or South American player.
To your last paragraph, I’m not sure if the MLS has pulled even with the Championship, but I’m certain that MLS could compete and succeed in the Championship, but even more certain is the meteoric rise of MLS, even in the last 6 months. Yesterday’s MLS final was a thing of beauty and historically, from a quality standpoint, one of the best MLS games….all of which point to the aforementioned and of better things to come from MLS.
I will agree with Vacqui that projecting a player’s success in a foreign league is an inexact science, of which there are a lot of variable, many of which have nothing to do with soccer. Because of this, there is a lot of validity of it being on a case by case basis.
Papi Grande
“— REPLY – If I’m Bosz, I “mess with it” and pick the right situation to start Pepi because he has EARNED it and to rest de Jong’s body and let him know that he MUST keep performing. If you are Bosz, and want to wait until “one of them cools or maybe both…cool off,” so be it…tomato, tomatoe.”
Let me put this another way.
That’s what they call a manager’s decision. Or better yet discretion.
Has Pepi proved that he has earned the opportunity for a start?
Sure. But that doesn’t mean he starts. de Jong has certainly proven he’s not bad either.
If I’m Bosz I do not want anyone on my game day roster who HAS NOT proven that they deserve a start. Otherwise I’m cutting them or loaning them out. Ideally you have at least 22 starter-worthy players. That’s depth.
You’re perhaps suggesting that de Jong could use a rest? That might be but some players do better if they start every game and are not as effective coming in off the bench.
PSV hired Bosz to sort all that out, to schedule everyone for maximum effectiveness.
And, I can promise you that if Bosz thought for one second that starting Pepi and bringing de Jong off the bench would work even better he would have done that in a New York second. And still would.
“the Eredivisie is 15 games into the season. If Pepi were to get a start tomorrow, who says that is “rushing the process?” That is the logic YOU are using to define “rushing this process.”
There are a lot of games left. And PSV are 15 and 0, scoring 52 goals. Scoring is not a problem at the moment. One thing about Bosz is he is known for being an attacking minded manager. And his offense appears to be doing their job.
So to me trying to fix a problem that does not exist is “rushing the process”.
Is Bosz preparing them for the rest of the campaign, when adjustments almost certainly will be needed?
I’m sure he is, though I have no idea what that entails. I’m sure he’s glad that Pepi has shone so well.
What I don’t know is what Bosz truly thinks of Pepi.
Can he trust this 15 game run? deJong is not only their leading scorer he’s also the club captain so you have to think that guy has a very high level of respect from everyone at that club. And he’s having at least as good a year as Pepi.
From USMNT fan perspective, I want Pepi to have to earn every single second of his PT. Maybe some of that will translate to the USMNT, a very soft team. I think of Weston who seems to do better when he has to fight for every single second of PT.
So from that standpoint I don’t worry about Pepi.
He’s in a great situation.
He’s either going to win the starting job and have to fight off de Jong to keep it.
Or he’s going to stay as a super sub and keep fighting to score goals and maybe win a starting job.
Unlike a lot of people here , I don’t think that just having regular playing time is enough for the USMNT. I think they have to be playing well to play for the USMNT. By that I mean we have two legit 2nd half options off the bench, Pepi and Reyna.
Doing great things Pepi. Only a matter of time he becomes the starter at PSV.