Ricardo Pepi high-earner in an extra season at PSV?

For both, a global final round awaits. In a few weeks, the spectacle begins on the other side of the ocean. But where are both actually going to play next season? Almost certainly not in Eindhoven, but perhaps there is still an extra season in Eindhoven for Pepi?

A wide-grinning Ismael Saibari, following the match against FC Twente, was happy to explain why he let Ricardo Pepi take the penalty. 'At that moment he hadn't scored yet and he's at the top of the list with us. I did ask, but Ricardo took it himself and I let him. He's a striker and a top scorer. Top.” According to Saibari, 'top' also refers to the mentality of his teammates, who wrapped up the season with a great win. „We always want to win. If we had played five bad matches, everyone would have forgotten our nice season a bit. We didn't want that.”

Is Pepi suitable for the Premier League after a few seasons as second and first striker for PSV with the necessary injuries? The American looks back very much with a good feeling on his season at PSV. The American striker gives himself a passing grade in conversation with ESPN, although he realizes that injuries cost him an even better year.

"A solid eight or nine", Pepi assesses his season. The attacker encountered several physical setbacks and sees that as the difference from a perfect season. "Those are certainly the one or two points that are missing to make it a ten, but that’s simply part of football."

Despite his injury troubles, Pepi delivered impressive numbers. In 25 Eredivisie matches, he was on target fifteen times, while he also scored three goals in the Champions League. "I was efficient, which resulted in a nice number of goals", said the 23-year-old striker, who this summer will be experiencing his first playoff round. Against FC Twente, Pepi also scored his fourth goal in a row.

Still, the season did not pass without frustration. Pepi had to regularly settle for a substitute role behind other forwards within coach Peter Bosz’s squad. "Of course you always want to start. You have to earn your place and sometimes I started. I also played more minutes than in the last two seasons. I learned a lot from it."

The American admits that it was not always easy to sit on the bench mentally. "I wouldn't want to say that I never get angry or frustrated, but I try to stay calm", said the professional American international, who with his urges to score and his averages in fact doesn't belong at a club like Fulham. 

A magnificent salary, the Premier League but Pepi would not be out of place at Newcastle United or Aston Villa either. Still, more and more voices are calling for keeping Pepi for PSV by means of a new and improved contract, whereby the American striker would likely become a big earner. It could be a stepping stone to a bigger club than Fulham at the end of the coming season. Top scorer Pepi, who has been the starting number one striker for Peter Bosz for a season, racking up goals in the Eredivisie and the Champions League back-to-back, and firing PSV to its fourth consecutive national title, is a far more appealing scenario than a backup striker who nonetheless leaves for Fulham this summer.