Aubameyang leaves Arsenal as Barcelona move looms

By Sports Desk February 01, 2022

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has left Arsenal by mutual consent ahead of his expected move to Barcelona.

The Gunners confirmed on Tuesday that Aubameyang had been released from his contract, which was due to expire at the end of next season.

Arsenal's decision is expected to pave the way for the 32-year-old to sign an initial six-month deal with Barca.

A statement from the Gunners read in part: "Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has left the club by mutual agreement.

"We wish Auba all the best for the next chapter in his career and thank him for his contribution to the club."

Aubameyang joined Arsenal in January 2018 and shared the Premier League Golden Boot with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane in his first full season in England.

He scored twice as the Gunners overcame Chelsea in the 2019-20 FA Cup final and found the back of the net 92 times in 162 appearances in all competitions for the club.

However, Aubameyang was stripped of the captaincy by Mikel Arteta in December for a disciplinary breach believed to relate to returning late from a trip abroad.

He was also the subject of an internal investigation by Arsenal after it was alleged he could have breached coronavirus restrictions to get a tattoo in February of last year. 

Arteta dropped Aubameyang from his squad after taking the armband off him, with the Gabon international's last appearance for the club coming in a 2-1 loss to Everton on December 6. 

Aubameyang scored four goals in his 14 Premier League appearances this season, averaging one every 259.8 mins – his worst in a campaign since arriving at Emirates Stadium. 

 

Related items

  • Malacia makes Man Utd comeback after 17 months out Malacia makes Man Utd comeback after 17 months out

    Tyrell Malacia made his injury comeback after a 17-month spell on the sidelines, returning for Manchester United Under-21s against Huddersfield in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday.

    The Netherlands international has not played since coming off the bench for his country against Croatia in the Nations League semi-final in June 2023.

    Since that game, Malacia has had knee surgery twice in an attempt to solve an injury that had proved difficult to manage.

    The 25-year-old made 39 appearances in all competitions for United after signing in the 2022-23 season, but has not featured for the first team since.

    He played for 45 minutes in Huddersfield and was taken off at half-time, although it was a quiet night for him and he rarely got on the ball.

    Malacia's return to competitive action coincided with the day that new head coach Ruben Amorim met some of United's senior players at the training ground.

    Luke Shaw, Mason Mount, Leny Yoro, Kobbie Mainoo and Toby Collyer were all among the players he saw while doing their individual injury rehab.

  • Malacia makes injury comeback for Under-21s after 17 months out Malacia makes injury comeback for Under-21s after 17 months out

    Tyrell Malacia made his injury comeback after a 17-month spell on the sidelines, returning for Manchester United Under-21s against Huddersfield in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday.

    The Netherlands international has not played since coming off the bench for his country against Croatia in the Nations League semi-final in June 2023.

    Since that game, Malacia has had knee surgery twice in an attempt to solve an injury that had proved difficult to manage.

    The 25-year-old made 39 appearances in all competitions for United after signing in the 2022-23 season, but has not featured for the first team since.

    He played for 45 minutes in Huddersfield and was taken off at half-time, although it was a quiet night for him and he rarely got on the ball.

    Malacia's return to competitive action coincided with the day that new head coach Ruben Amorim met some of United's senior players at the training ground.

    Luke Shaw, Mason Mount, Leny Yoro, Kobbie Mainoo and Toby Collyer were all among the players he saw while doing their individual injury rehab.

  • Taylor pleased with Man City's physical test during Hammarby win Taylor pleased with Man City's physical test during Hammarby win

    Manchester City head coach Gareth Taylor was pleased with how his team stood up to the physical challenge of Hammarby in their 2-0 Champions League victory on Tuesday.

    Laura Blindkilde Brown and Aoba Fujino were on target in the second half at the Joie Stadium, moving them three points clear at the top of Group D. 

    City's win extended their unbeaten start to the season, having won every game in all competitions following a 2-2 draw against Arsenal on opening day.

    The hosts dominated for large parts of the encounter, ending with an expected goals (xG) total of 2.75 from their 16 shots, while also accumulating 73.6% possession. 

    But Taylor was happy with his side's display and explained the physical test against the Swedish champions was something his players will benefit from moving forward. 

    “Difficult game for us, physical challenge, a physical team in Hammarby. I think they outnumber us a little bit in terms of size, considering when you look at our midfield. But I thought the girls handled it really well," Taylor said after the game

    “I thought we dominated the game. In the early parts we were just a little bit off in our final action. We just needed to speed up a little bit in terms of being on the end of it, and we spoke about that at half-time, and we score with Laura getting into that type of position we’d been talking about.

    “[The physicality was something] we were prepared for, but dealing with it is a different thing. Having Bunny [Khadija Shaw] and Alanna [Kennedy] on the pitch, two of our more physical players, is really important, particularly for set-plays.

    “At 1-0 we were defending a couple of scenarios like that, Yama [Ayaka Yamashita] making a really good save at one point. Then Aoba [Fujino] got the goal that maybe allowed us to change things up a little bit more, get some people off that we’d like to manage.

    “I think the girls have dealt with it really well tonight. We expected it, we thought it would be difficult, and they rose to the challenge.”

    Taylor had made changes to City's starting XI, with Lauren Hemp among the trio to drop out from the weekend and she did not feature in the squad.

    Ahead of their weekend game against Chelsea, who are second in the Women's Super League, Taylor explained the reasoning behind Hemp's absence.

    “We’ve just got an issue with Lauren that we just need to analyse a little bit further, that’s all," he said.

    “It’s something that potentially happened in the Palace game [on 3 November]. She was able to play in the Tottenham game [last Friday] but wasn’t able to tonight, so we’ll just take a little bit longer to assess and find out more.

    “Hopefully [she can play against Chelsea]. There’s an opportunity there, we’ll just have to take a moment tomorrow, have a good conversation and find out where we’re at with the medical staff.”

© 2024 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.