Chelsea striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang takes a dig at Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta
Speaking to A Jewellers (h/t Evening Standard), Chelsea striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang talked about his turbulent ending at Arsenal and took a dig at Gunners’ manager Mikel Arteta for not being able to handle the big players.
Aubameyang arrived at Arsenal in January 2018 from Borussia Dortmund. His record for the Gunners was sensational, with 92 goals and 21 assists in 163 appearances in all competitions. Goals included match-winning ones in the club’s run to FA Cup success in 2020, beating Manchester City and Chelsea in the semi-final and final respectively.
His ending at the Emirates stadium was a bad one after falling out with Arteta and getting stripped of the captaincy. He is back in the Premier League with Chelsea though, seven months after leaving North London and a successful stint at Barcelona in between.
Here’s what the Gabon striker said regarding his exit from Arsenal and about Arteta (h/t Evening Standard):
“I remember [Barcelona] first called my father.
“We knew the coach, Xavi, then he called me and said there is an opportunity because you have those problems with Arsenal, but if you come you will help us a lot, so I said, ‘okay’.
“But to manage big characters or big players, [Arteta] can’t deal with it. He needs some young players, they don’t say anything, they listen.”
Whatever Arteta is doing now is working wonders for him and Arsenal though. The Gunners defeated Liverpool on Sunday to retain the top spot in the league after nine games. He has built one of the youngest squads in the league while producing a high level of football so far this season.
It is clear that there was some discontent between him and Aubameyang. Maybe the latter is right that the Arsenal boss is much better at coaching and handling younger players compared to the big characters.
Whatever it is, it’s in the past now. The key for the striker is to continue his solid start in Chelsea colours. He has scored goals in his last two appearances for the Blues and has looked the part after a slow start in the first two games.
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Graham Potter’s men have plenty of games to look forward to, and they would be needing Aubameyang to be on top of his game.