After a dramatic end to the winter transfer window, Arsenal fans hoped that the club would sign a new player to strengthen the attack instead of seeing their ex-captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leave. Arsenal released a club statement on their website stating, “Aubameyang leaves club by mutual consent.” Arsenal fans believe that the captain’s armband is cursed at their club. Aubameyang was given the captains role by their former manager Unai Emery, and this also continued under the current manager Mikel Arteta. Arteta has observed and stated that Auba has had disciplinary issues in recent years.
This was first seen in the North London derby last season when he was not part of the starting lineup, with Arteta citing disciplinary issues. This continued in this season when he was not part of the squad against Southampton in the Premier League while Arteta again cited disciplinary reasons. A few days later, Auba was removed from the captaincy role by the manager. Aubameyang was purchased from Dortmund on the deadline day of the winter transfer window for a then club-record fee of £56 million. However, the ending does not do enough justification. Four years later, he decides to leave the club and join the Spanish giants Barcelona on the same day. Let us have a look at his time in Arsenal.
AUBAMEYANG 2018-22
He was bought into the club by Arsene Wenger to improve the attack. Scoring in his debut league game against Everton gave the fans what they wanted to see. He scored ten goals in his first half-season appearances and provided four assists in 13 league games. Auba was the last goal scorer for Arsenal under the spell of Arsene Wenger. His goal-scoring form from the German league made him the leading man in attack. Starting the new season under new manager Unai Emery, Auba scored his first season goal against Cardiff City. In the 2018-19 season, Auba was on a roll and scored goals pretty often; this resulted in reaching the ten goals mark before anyone else in that season. He ended the season by scoring two goals against Burnley, making him the season’s top scorer alongside the Liverpool duo Salah and Mane with 22 goals. However, the ending of the season was pretty upsetting as they lost the Europa League finals to their London rivals Chelsea 4-1. He also won the Player of the Month for his five goals scored in September.
In the new season, 2019-20, he scored goals crucial in Arsenal’s successful season. Auba turned into a clutch player in the FA Cup, where he helped his team beat the defending champions Man City 2-0, scoring both the goals. They then played Chelsea in the finals of the FA Cup. Chelsea opened the scoring in the 5th minute, Auba then equalised in the 28th minute by converting a penalty and then scored the winner in the 67th minute. He became the first African to win the FA Cup as a captain. He finished the season with 22 league goals. Further, he could not continue the goal-scoring run in the next season, although the manager gave him enough chances.
