Ricardo Pepi earned a rare Eredivisie start on Saturday at Willem II and walked away as Man of the Match for the reigning league champions.
Pepi scored twice for Peter Bosz’s squad in a 2-0 road triumph on Saturday. The U.S. men’s national team forward entered the match with only one goal to his name so far but added to his tally with a pair of second-half goals.
After a goal-less first half, Pepi broke the deadlock right after the interval. His header from Joey Veerman’s cross nestled into the bottom-right corner for a 1-0 PSV advantage.
Pepi doubled his tally and PSV’s lead in the 64th minute by slotting home Rick Karsdorp’s pass for a 2-0 lead.
The 21-year-old went the distance, winning three duels, making one interception, and scoring on two of his three efforts on target. It marked Pepi’s first multi-goal performance at club level since October 2022.
With new USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino beginning his reign this October, Pepi will be fighting for opportunities at the No. 9 position.
Pepi and PSV resume UEFA Champions League play on Tuesday against Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon.
They won the Eredivisie for the first time in several years. Incredible pressure for Bosz to do that. He rode vet LDJ who won scoring title. Someone from all accounts who is outspoken about playing time and who wanted the scoring title. All boxes were checked. Should give Pepi more time. Gives Bosz more leeway/reason to rest LDJ despite his protestations to play as much as he can. Also, Pepi isn’t increasing his value by sitting and barely playing. Should be more of a normal year…rotation wise, occasional starts. Can’t stress how much pressure was on Bosz last year. For them to have not won a title and have been so mediocre these last several years was simply not acceptable for that team in the league.
Not going ro be rare anymore. Luke de Jong needs rest. I’m sure there will be more starts for Pepi.