Pepe proves again that age is just a number

WHILE Mikel Arteta rallied his men from the touchline, his fellow 41-year-old was on the pitch trying to end Arsenal’s Champions League dream. If this is Pepe’s last season, he bows out with warrior status in tow. The Porto centre back, who is remarkably the first outfield player over the age of 40 to play in this competition, has never really cared about people’s opinions of him. His long catalogue of infringements, which includes stamping on Lionel Messi’s hand in the 2012 El Clasico, says as much. In the first half last night, the three-time Champions League winner showed both excellence and fragility. On 29 minutes, Ben White’s looping cross evaded goalkeeper Diogo Costa. Pepe was there on the line to glance the ball wide, whacking his arm on a post in the process. Later in the half though, as Leandro Trossard darted into the box, he failed to close the forward down and he scored. Despite this, his performance had moments of shine. He still has some engine on him, as seen on eight minutes when he dashed back with Trossard, 12 years his junior, on his tail. He was, as ever, a threat at setpieces. There were a couple of headed flick-ons which his Porto team-mates could have produced more from and, of course, a trademark booking for a knee to Kai Havertz. He also played all 120 minutes, not bad for a 41-year-old. It all led to the same conclusion — there is still life in Pepe yet. Yes, the bad and the ugly have often reared their heads in this two-decade long career, but as Martin Odegaard said about his former Real Madrid team-mate on Monday: ‘What he’s doing at that age… a lot of respect to him.’