Why Aubameyang's departure is a sign of coming summer overhaul at Arsenal
Stefan Bienkowski
- 4 Feb 2022 09:10 GMT
- 5 min read
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s departure from Arsenal in the January transfer window may just be the start of a bigger overhaul at the club ahead of the summer transfer window.
According to the Athletic’s David Ornstein, the Gabon striker was stripped of his captaincy and sold by the London club to Barcelona because he went against Mikel Arteta.
And that, according to the sports journalist, is a quick way of losing your place at Arsenal these days.
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"Under Mikel Arteta it's my way or the highway. He wants to overhaul things at Arsenal, on and off the pitch,” said Ornstein on Sky sports News.
"The culture, the standards, and he believes whatever anyone else might think that Aubameyang had committed one indiscretion too many with his late return from a club-sanctioned trip to collect his unwell mother in December.
"He was stripped of the captaincy and made to train alone. From what I've heard there was no way back from that. From Arsenal's perspective, everyone has to toe the line but that wasn't happening."
Who else could leave Arsenal?
It’s with that information in mind that it’s rather easy to see where Arteta’s wrath may land next in the Arsenal squad.
Alongside Aubameyang up front are two forwards that have been heavily linked with moves away from the club in Alexandre Lacazette and Nicolas Pepe. The former has a contract that is expiring at the end of the season and the latter has been rather vocal about his lack of game time in the Premier League.
Similarly, Arsenal are looking increasingly likely to bid farewell to young striker Eddie Nketiah, who has yet to sign a contract extension and was heavily linked with a move to Crystal Palace in the January transfer window.
Such a move was reportedly blocked by Arsenal, but with his contract set to expire at the end of the season, the club may not be able to stop Nketiah from also moving on in the summer.
Elsewhere in the team, it seems likely that Bernd Leno will push for a move ahead of next season after being dropped as the club’s No.1 goalkeeper by Aaron Ramsdale.
