Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who recently signed a three-and-a-half-year deal with La Liga giants Barcelona, has lifted the lid on his hostile exit from Arsenal. The former Premier League star blamed Mikel Arteta for his unceremonious departure from Arsenal. Aubameyang joined Barcelona on a free transfer in the January window.
Aubameyang and Arteta had a fallout after the Spaniard decided to remove the striker from club captaincy duties citing multiple disciplinary issues. The 32-year-old also was axed from the first-team squad by the Arsenal manager over the past couple of months, which led to speculations over his future in north London.
“They were complicated months but I think that’s how football is sometimes,” Aubameyang was quoted saying at his official unveiling at Barca by Goal.com
“For my part, I have never wanted to do something wrong and now I think that this is the past and I want to think about the present and right now that is my answer,” he added.
After arriving for 56 million pounds, a club record for Arsenal at the time from Borussia Dortmund in the 2018 January transfer window, Aubameyang, scored 92 goals in 163 appearances. He was handed the captain’s armband in November 2019 but was stripped of it in December 2021, after returning late from a pre-agreed trip to France to see his ill mother.
“I think the problem was only with Arteta and he made the decision. I can’t say much, I wasn’t happy and that’s it. It happened like that, I stayed very calm and that’s it,” the striker added.
Arsenal were keen on offloading Aubameyang and Barcelona pounced on the opportunity. The Premier League outfit agreed to terminate his contract earlier this week, freeing him to sign for Barcelona on a deal until 2025. However, both parties have the option of terminating it in 2023, if things do not go as per plans.
Aubameyang will don the No 25 shirt at Barca and is expected to make his La Liga debut in Sunday’s game against Atletico Madrid at Camp Nou.
Comments
0 comment