With his future in some doubt, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang says he’s happy at Arsenal and enjoys his connection with the fans.
The leading scorer and captain will have just 12 months left on his deal in the summer – something which demands a decision from both the player and the club – and it’s one which may be driven by the need to raise funds if we don’t finish in the European places this season.
However, until then, Aubameyang is enjoying his time in North London, as he told Sky Sports this weekend.
“Whatever happens, I’m a guy tries to be always ready,” he said.
“I love the fans here. When I was younger I used to watch Arsenal because they always had great players and yeah … they won trophies as well.
“I think it’s really a pleasure to be here. I’m really happy, and that’s the feeling.”
He also touched on Mikel Arteta, who has helped rebalance what appeared to be a sinking ship under Unai Emery.
“He has a lot of new ideas,” said Aubameyang. “He learned with one of the best coaches in the world so it’s always good to experience like this.
“He came here with passion because he played for this club before, and we’re happy to have him.”
If we do break up can we still be friends?
I love him, but if he doesn’t sign, gotta sell him in the summer.
Yea, but we can still be friends no?
Fuck buddies
I do feel this whole contract saga is taking long because he’s willing to see where we end up at the of season. He feels responsible for this club now that he’s captain, he’ll give is all, he’s always giving his all just to see us win games and get back to the top. I hope the rest of the team adopt his attitude and everyone starts delivering consistently in their various position and duties. If we make UCL, I think Auba would sign if he gets a raise in his wage. I think he’s waiting for that scenario to… Read more »
I get it. When you win games you get to do the whole media circle jerk and when you lose you have talk with humility about how you need to do better. But seriously, how are these performances any different to the old Emery results where we luck our way to victory? Everton and West Ham both should have got more out of the game and sandwiched between that was that appalling performance against Olympiacos. Am I the only one who’s getting really worried? Results are important but performances are more so if we want to make a dent in… Read more »
We aren’t conceding 25 shots to 4 anymore so whichever way you look at it it’s an improvement.
We still got outshot by both Everton and West Ham at home. We still conceded huge, gaping chances over and over. We still spent large parts of the games massively on the rocks, we still relied heavily on Leno to save our skin. If Calvert-Lewin scores a simple header and Antonio scores one of his multitude of gilt edged chances we are a club in total, compete meltdown. I’m not saying this because I’m a joyless twat who loves being negative but after the last few performances we need to recognise that despite results, this is simply not good enough.… Read more »
So what do you suppose we do?
Firstly we need to work out a way to break this cycle. The pattern is almost identical with Arteta and Emery. The first few games we play well but don’t get results – we even have that Chelsea game that Emery had where we play great and lose. Then the unbeaten “streak” begins which in this case has been made primarily of draws. We also get outshot by Chelsea (19-2), Sheff United at home, Leeds at home, Burnley away, Everton at home and West Ham at home (we draw with United and Bournemouth on shots in this period too). Clearly… Read more »
I’m a little surprised your getting downvoted, though I do feel like Arteta has improved us, so there are some differences that stand out from the Emery error. I think we’re winning a few more games because we deserve to, rather then by just blind luck, but there are still a few results where we were pretty lucky, you can’t really ignore those, but that happens to all teams, so we have to take those wins and use them to keep moving in the right direction. I think in Emery;s 22 unbeaten run, we were playing better football then we… Read more »
move a lot of them on this summer.
Well I would simply say it like this. The difference is huge, example: this team has played many games already and earlier in the season had been left demoralised by inferior tactics/mindset. Now they’re being asked to do so much more running it’s a serious thing! They haven’t stopped performing cos under emery we would of drawn or lost that game but we still managed to score and from ozil assist an laca who have not had the best of times this season. I don’t see what you see but I am a realist and it is what it is… Read more »
We’ve also just come off a two week break and many of the players who didn’t play against Pompy had a ten day gap before West Ham. And I find it hard to believe that a group of players are still demoralised by a manager who was sacked three and a half months ago.
I struggle to see how I am not the realist when results have been ok and performances generally poor this year and yet people still believe we can move up five places in ten games and get a champions league spot.
I believe we can get 5 th !! and why not !! we are only 3 points away from it with a game in hand which is City on Wednesday !! we are 9 th in the league and one good win against City takes us to 5th………. you say you are not a negative twat i strongly disagree with you !! I think you are !! and if i was a betting man id say you are a spud in disguise or just pure negative arsenal !!
I won’t dignify this comment with a response in sorts. I’ll merely make you a deal which I’m sure the other readers of Arseblog will be keen to take me up on too.
If we finish 5th or above this season I will never write another word on this site. I will walk away into the sunset, never to be heard from again.
But if we don’t get 5th or above, you will take back calling me a twat and a Spud is disguise.
How’s that Carl?
Never comment and walk away? See the extremities. This is why you’re not the realist just calm down bro smoke some nice buds bro you’re usually funny but sometimes I think it goes to your head. If not then I apologise
I remember when I used to boast about smoking weed. But then something amazing happened. I grew up.
4th /5th is doable but that says far more about how totally inept the league is outside of Liverpool this year. That said I do see some signs of progress but some of these players just aren’t good enough and will be replaced this summer
one other things have you looked at the Fixture list next for the next 3 games !! i would if i were you !! pmsl !!
I genuinely wish I had the naivety to see our situation so bluntly and think that we are an amazing club with great players but sadly had a terrible manager who ruined everything. But now we have a great manager and we are going to be awesome again.
But unfortunately for me I don’t have the analytical mind of a seven year old.
I agree with most of what you’ve said. However I think us being back in the CL will help Arteta overall. Whether it’d be keeping/attracting players and the club would be more willing to back him after pulling off something short of a miracle.
One thing that I find comfort with is that Arteta doesn’t hide. He speaks about our flaws which we agree with. He doesn’t talk in riddles or deflects major issues.
“I think us being back in the CL will help Arteta overall.”
Controversial.
I think that just shows a bit of heart and commitment can help with the results. Skill alone isn’t enough, we’ve witnessed that many times, sheer will power can take you places. That’s what Arteta is trying to achieve with a team that buckled so badly under Emery. Just trying to get the best out of a badly assembled squad.
i think you are saying it because you enjoy to be negative !! You cannot see the positives Arteta has brought to the players fans and club !! I will say it again !! Unbeaten this year 9 games unbeaten and 3 straight wins on the bounce !! and look at the table !! we are one win from over taking the spuds !! and its possible to get 5th !! Now when Emery was here none of the above were likely !! No game in the Premier league is a walk in the park…. West ham are battling to… Read more »
We actually finished 5th in Emery’s first season. That actually happened. And we went to a Europa final. We didn’t make the last 16 this year. Look, I’m not saying that we are no better under Arteta than the last few months with Emery. Any fool can see that these performances are better than that of earlier in the season. But they are still very variable on whether or not the opponents take their chances. And we give them a lot. Newcastle and Palace are the only team we’ve outshot under Arteta in the prem. And Palace we only had… Read more »
Couldn’t agree more. Amazing how many thumbs down you’re getting. We’re really not a very good team, the gap between the traditional top 4 has widened, other clubs have improved with higher finances. Being able to pick off players from outside the top 15 clubs with highest revenues, with offers of better wages. We’re still struggling, and while Saka was still one of our better players yesterday, West Ham had prepared for him. Our improvement has come from young players having a bit more time to settle, having Bellerin back, meaning we have an actual right back playing right back.… Read more »
Helder ur making very salient points that I pretty much agree with almost 100 percent. But if we would have drawn the Everton and west ham games like we probably deserved to we would be talking about Arteta needing time and summer transfers etc. No one would be talking doom and gloom. Our centre midfield that caves and allows shots regularly was not magically repaired under Arteta and the Xhaka left back centre mid combo is obviously not a permanent thing. Ozil is playing better but he doesn’t have a future with us. I think we can still say most… Read more »
Totally agree with you mate. I think most of us have the critical faculties to realise that Arteta needs time and money and that he’s going a very good job under the circumstances. But just as we got carried away at the beginning of this season after a 2-1 win at home to Burnley no less, we need to recognise the fragility of this side and do what we can to patch it up. We look so dodgy at set pieces and just constantly gaping on the break. Our defenders back off way too much and Leno has become a… Read more »
I don’t think it is a case of rose tinted glasses but Arteta has made a huge positive impact already and, given the summer transfer window and a proper preseason, I don’t see why that positive trajectory wouldn’t continue. I do think we need to make better use of the right hand side of the pitch and would be tempted to try Pepe in Ozil’s position, Nelson on the wing and Hector at rightback – purely because I don’t think we are getting the most from Pepe
i think you are forgetting one thing !! the European game was a hard game against a team that hadnt lost many and has have had a great season !! it end 2-2 but they won on away goals !! A lot has changed from Emery and Arteta you only have to look at the table to see that!! Arteta gets results still unbeaten this year in the league !! 9 games unbeaten run and 3 wins on the bounce !!
It’s better than it was even without a pre season. Even if we finish 10th it’s fine, we were looking like a relegation team before. It’s a measure of how well we’re doing in comparison that we’re even talking about champion’s league at all!
Arteta (and the players) have been slipping lately, no doubt about it, but hopefully it’s just a blip on the radar and we’ll be playing better football by Wednesday. If not, then we should probably prepare ourselves for the worst. Playing City is never easy, and I doubt Pep is going to give us a pass because Mikel is our manager. He might want to make it a point to beat him because of their relationship, you never know?
I think we’ve improved in general but what we have seen over the last couple of games is a reversion to the mean, especially against Olympiakos and West Ham. U-shaped football is back and we’ve lost solidarity in the middle of the park.
Personally I’d like to see a tweak in personnel and formation; toughen up the midfield, be more direct on the flanks and feed our towards earlier.
I think at this stage points are more than performances
I don’t think you are the only one getting worried, but it’s not as simple as the players needing to “sort their shit and quick”. A lot of our players lack the Physicality required to compete within the top 6 of the premier league, and our squad lacks the balance needed to play the kind of football that Arteta wants to play. It’s that simple I’m afraid. This is a problem that the executives at Arsenal need to rectify over the next few transfer windows, and am I the only one who has fuck all confidence in them to do… Read more »
I think if we get Champions League football then he’ll stay. This is going to be a massive end of season for us in how we shape up for next season.
Open question: would you keep Aubameyang even if he demanded Ozil money, bearing in mind that he’ll be 31 in the summer (until then, of course, he will be 30 because that’s how it works)?
Yep, because other than Özil , he deliveres constantly.
Yes because Auba has earnt it.
It’s hard for some Gooners to look beyond the bad Ozil/Alexis example but many top-level footballers deliver consistent performances into their 30s. Pirlo was a famous late bloomer, as was our own Ian Wright who didn’t leave Arsenal until he was 35.
In the modern era there’s Ronaldo, Diego Godin, Toni Kroos, Atalanta’s ‘Papu’ Gomez, Jordi Alba, Sergio Ramos, Karim Benzema and Edin Dzeko, all in their 30s and still delivering.
And let’s not forget Santi Cazorla who’s 35.
Many many thumbs up!
Whether he’s earned it isn’t really here or there, it’s will he keep earning it! Tbf you’ve mentioned some really good examples of where it has worked and players have been consistent through their early 30s, I guess I’m asking how do we know Auba will be like them instead of another Sanchez/Rooney?
When he can’t do a backflip celebration ill consider him a normal man lol but while he can pull that off within a demanding prom game i cant really say he’s aging haha
Does he perform just as well in two years from now then? Three years? You have the proof of his continuing good form for the duration of the new deal that he hasn’t negotiated yet? Here’s the thing. Signing a new deal is not a guarantee of an unchanging level of performance thereafter. Age has an effect on performance. Aubameyang is aging just like the rest of us. United found that out with Rooney. It cost them 1.3 million a month to learn it. Environment has an effect on performance. It will drag it down much faster than it can… Read more »
I am very critical of Özil nowadays, but I must admit that before he got that contract, Özil mostly delivered as well. Maybe not to warrant 350 k a week, but much, much more than he does now.
I also completely agree with kaius that Auba has earned it and I also don’t think that we would see a rapid decline of his performances, at least not of his commitment.
Also I’m no doctor, but he really strikes me as someone who will be close to this level for another contract.I think we should absolutely pay him what he wants and and in a few years time he’ll still be worth a fortune to another league.
I can see this, I think his game is based as much on clever movement and technique as it is raw pace, and getting older doesn’t necessarily mean getting slower straight away. But is there the risk that at 32/33 his performances nosedive and were stuck with him on the books?
It’s a risk we should be willing to take, even though we got stung badly by the Ozil deal. Auba is on another level and I just don’t seem him suddenly dropping off in his performances. Ozil has always been a little inconsistent, before he signed the contract, he upped his game and began playing really well in order to get that contract, then the performances fell off pretty much immediately after he signed. I think Auba will be different, he has more drive to be one of the best. He’s in a team that’s spent most of the season… Read more »
Funny: you never have to wait for long here to find negative allusions to Özil.
It’s not a negative allusion at all, it’s actually just the latest transfer gossip. Apparently that’s what he’s asking for and we’re dragging our heels, was interested in what people thought about it.
Genuine question: do you guys know we’re being called assnal by spurs sites?
Would still rather be the ‘ass’ than the shit
No because 1 I don’t read them .2 why would you read them 3 sticks and stones
he reads them because he is a sad deluded spud fan !! they were 12 points ahead of us now if we win on wednesday we go 2 points clear of them !! sad sad sad little spuds !! poor poor poor spuds !! they get rid of poch and get mourinho pmsl !!
do i care ???? errrr nope !! 12 points ahead of us now if we beat City wednesday night we go 2 points clear of them !!
hey !! spud how does it feel being forever in Arsenals shadow !! get rid of Poch and get Mourinho !! pmsl !! pmsl lol pmsl
They need something to distract them from the abject disaster that comes from tying yourself to Mourinho. He’s already demoralising and dismissing most of their younger players. They know he only picks them to destroy their reputations to make himself look better.
Wouldn’t you need to distract yourself with word games from remembering who your coach is if it was assinho?
Oh no, that’s the kind of crippling satire that could undermine the foundation of our whole club.
Genuine question back at you: what are you even doing skulking around Sp*rs blogs? Don’t you know what do we think of them??
Ah, bless. The perpetually disappointed knuckle-draggers can’t spell.
You actually expect the scum to call us nice names?
But ….
Auba is not going anywhere……
Unfortunately that’s why he wants to leave.
I like Auba, I hope he stays, but I also hope we don’t have to pay him a barrel full of money to make that possible. It would be a miracle if we somehow slipped into a champions league spot this season. It sure would make a lot of our rivals salty, which is always a beautiful thing.
Wait till you go through a goal drought. You won’t love our entitled fans anymore. You won’t give your box to the thickos from AFTV either.
Citeh lose at Manure, does that make them harder or easier to beat on Wednesday? Auba winner would add to his contract talks.
Sign da ting then!!
Unpopular opinion, but a lot of the fans he likes are the boys over at AFTV. A lot of hate for those guys, but they do often connect with the players…just food for thought.