Nicolas Pepe is back in the Ivory Coast squad — not because he forced his way in, but because a teenager got injured and the door swung open. It's a reprieve, not a triumph, and Pepe knows the difference.
The 30-year-old Villarreal forward had been left out of the original group for friendlies against South Korea on Saturday and Scotland on March 31. Teenage striker Yann Diomande's injury changed the calculus fast, and suddenly a player who hadn't been capped since October found himself back in the picture.
A lot of baggage in the carry-on
The recall doesn't erase the last few months. Pepe was omitted from the AFCON squad entirely — the tournament Ivory Coast entered as defending champions before being knocked out at the quarter-final stage. Then came the YouTube video. Comments about Morocco's Cup of Nations record, an apology, claims of racial abuse online, and a public swipe at the Ivorian federation for leaving him without support. That's a lot of noise around a player trying to rebuild his international standing.
To his credit, the football has been decent. Five LaLiga goals for Villarreal this season suggests he's not a spent force — just a player who drifted out of favour for reasons that weren't entirely about form.
These two friendlies are as close to a formal trial as Pepe is likely to get. Ivory Coast are in World Cup Group E alongside Ecuador, Germany and Curacao. Germany alone makes that a group where every selection decision matters. Anyone betting on the Elephants to advance will want to see a squad that actually looks settled — and right now, with injury-driven recalls and recent federation drama, settled is not the word.
Pepe has 50 caps and the quality to still contribute at this level. Whether the federation sees it that way beyond this window is another question entirely.
