Arsenal 'put Aubameyang up for sale in January' despite Mikel Arteta's private view

Posted Thursday, December 23, 2021 by Express.co.uk

ARSENAL star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been stripped of his captaincy after a plethora of disciplinary issues.

Arsenal have reportedly put Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang up for sale after his major fall out with boss Mikel Arteta. The Gabon international was stripped of his captaincy last week after multiple issues and has since been training away from his team-mates.

ESPN claim the situation is still repairable, although the north London outfit are ready to gauge interest from European powerhouses to see if a deal is plausible.

Clubs that have been previously interested in the Gabonese international include Barcelona, Juventus, Chelsea and AC Milan.

But having signed a new £250,000-per-week contract last summer, it could be hard to shift Aubameyang.

A move could be done if Arsenal pay some of his astronomical wages, with Barcelona and Juventus seemingly the front runners.

Arsenal 'put Aubameyang up for sale in January' despite Mikel Arteta's private view
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's Arsenal career could be over (Image: GETTY)

Yet despite the whole host of interested parties, it is believed that Aubameyang previously enjoyed a close relationship with Arteta.

Arteta remained coy when asked about Aubameyang on Wednesday. When asked if he needed to apologise and could return to face Norwich on Boxing Day, Arteta said: "I think we have shown in this club that everybody can make mistakes or you can have different ways of thinking or acting. I am completely open to that (an apology) but it is not about that."

He added: "We will go game by game. We will decide the squad (for Norwich) as we get closer to the game." Arteta has banished Aubameyang to train away from the first-team squad but is said to be open to him returning to the first-team fold.

That is despite Aubameyang overstepping the mark at the Emirates on numerous occasions, with the striker returning late on his return from a trip to France that was specially sanctioned in the latest incident.

However, with the African Cup of Nations due to start soon, this will give Arsenal time to assess where the Gabonese star's future lies.

"It was a disciplinary breach and that’s why he was out of the squad," Arteta said when the news broke.

"I think we have been very consistent that we have certain non-negotiables in the team that we have set ourselves as a club."

And after Arsenal's scintillating 4-1 win over Sunderland in the Carabao Cup quarter-final, Arteta showed that the striker still wasn't in his plans.

Arsenal 'put Aubameyang up for sale in January' despite Mikel Arteta's private view
Arteta hasn't ruled out Aubameyang returning to the first XI but club are now looking to sell him (Image: GETTY)