Mikel Arteta may well have got what he wanted by finally seeing the back of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – a striker who has proved as disruptive to the manager’s Arsenal reign as he has been the instigator of its rare successes.
The Gabon international agreed an 11th hour move to Barcelona on Monday as the transfer deadline loomed, and Arteta may well have cracked a smile knowing he won’t have to work with Aubameyang again.
The pair have had their ups and downs over their two-and-a-bit years together. It was the ex-Borussia Dortmund sensation who catapulted Arteta’s Gunners to FA Cup success in 2020. He was rewarded a few months later with a bumper £350,000-a-week contract – and from there on it all went downhill.
Multiple “disciplinary” issues followed over the past year or so, and he was stripped of the captaincy before Christmas. Arteta – never one to shy away from blaming players when the time suits – has never seemed too interested in keeping Aubameyang onside. The chance to cut ties was always going to be taken.
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And Arsenal may well come to rue sending the club’s most lethal attacking talent away from north London without having anyone coming in.
Aubameyang was already in Spain when the call came to have a late Barcelona medical. Perhaps not a coincidence as he has family there.At 32, Aubameyang was never going to have much sell-on value and his four league goals this season have hardly justified his wages. Offloading him now saves the club £25m. The likes of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Emile Smith Rowe is where Arsenal’s future lies.
But Aubameyang’s departure from the Emirates leaves the immediate problem of just two recognised strikers being there to fill his shoes. One, Alexandre Lacazette, has blown hot and cold all season and boasts just five goals. The other, Eddie Nketiah, has never convinced Arteta he is worthy of regular starting opportunities. He has also scored five – all in the Carabao Cup.
Both men are out of contract in the summer. This is perhaps the most alarming thing; not the fact they have lost Aubameyang and not replaced him, but that they could see all three strikers leave within the space of six months.
The response? Most likely pinning Lacazette and Nketiah down to expensive long-term deals akin to the one Aubameyang signed.
What’s more, Arsenal have sent another player away from the club in the same month they complained about not having enough fit squad members for the north London derby.
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Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Pablo Mari, Sead Kolasinac and Calum Chambers have all left.
Arsenal fans must be wondering how it has come to this. Arsenal and Barcelona were in talks over Aubameyang earlier in this transfer window, which means the Gunners had time to find a replacement.
It means that tactically Arsenal find themselves in the unenviable situation of having no trusted focal point up front, and no-one coming through the system. Arteta appeared to take one look at Folarin Balogun at the start of the season before sending him on loan to Middlesbrough.
Failing to replace a focal striker is a mistake Arsenal have made before. In 2009, they sold Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City and didn’t find an alternative. They finished 11 points behind league champions Chelsea that season.
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This term it islikely to be more than double that gap. Liverpool and Manchester City have both signed attacking talent in this window, while Chelsea have been on the lookout.
With Newcastle, Everton and Spurs doing deals, sitting back and looking after the pennies could be a disastrously short-sighted move from Arsenal, one that Arteta may live to regret sooner than he expects.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/JMGscSWLB
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