Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang admits his scoring problems have weighed heavy on his mind this season but as club captain he’s done his best to bring positivity to the Arsenal dressing room.
The striker has been integral to the Gunners since signing from Borussia Dortmund two years ago but has struggled in front of goal since committing his long-term future to the club in September.
So far this campaign, the 31-year-old has netted just six times in 18 appearances – a situation that has been exacerbated by underperforming teammates – and it’s taken a visible toll on his body language.
It’s not been easy, but Auba has backed himself to get back on track and insists he’s as committed as ever to setting an example to the rest of the team.
“It’s really hard to manage both [being captain and out of form] but you have to be as positive as you can because the team needs you,” Aubameyang told Sky Sports ahead of Thursday’s game with Crystal Palace.
“I always try to give my best, not only on the pitch but also in the dressing room for the guys.
“Sometimes it’s hard and maybe you are not in the right mood but you have to find a way to change it and give positive vibes for the guys.”
Reflecting on his performances in the first half of the season, he added:
“We gave a lot at the end of the season to win the FA Cup and to qualify for the Europa League because it was really important for the club.
“From the beginning of this season I was struggling a lot but I think this is part of football.
“Sometimes you have ups and downs and you have to manage it as [best] you can. I tried my best and until now it was not the best performance from me.
“I’m still positive. I think I can turn this around.”
After a couple of missed chances, Aubameyang did get on the scoresheet right at the end of Arsenal’s 2-0 extra-time win over Newcastle United on Saturday night. Here’s hoping he can pick up where he left off when Palace visit.
Good on him for being honest. I was interested to see how he’d react when he finally got his open play goal, and he looked ecstatic, which I think is encouraging. Have said it before, but I can see that opening the floodgates.. Fancy him for a couple tomorrow.
Admission is the first step towards recovery. Hopefully, Willian also follows the example and admits to himself that “he sucks!”…. only then he will be lead towards the path of greatness.
He should admit that he is not capitan material. We haven’t had a properating capitan for years. Aubu is a world class striker and he will start banging in the goals again, but let’s admit it, only reason he got the armband was part of his contract to keep him at Arsensl. How many times have you seen him talk to his team mates on the field? He foesnt say a word our there. Capitan have to be vocal.
These are different times…a vocal screaming captain like Tony Adams or Roy Keane may have worked during the 90s when ur dealing with a different generations of players. Now a days, the captaincy style has to be different…something more nurturing to deal with the millenials and Gen Z’ers who are more receptive to constructive criticism then being yellled at. Auba has a positive personality, always smiling and tries to keep chin up even when things r going bad. Leading by example is more important than being vocal. When u r not scoring goals or contributing in any other ways to… Read more »
Sometimes talking with my kids, they think I am criticizing someone but I am not. These guys were told by their mothers and fathers Messi is great but your headers are better than his or something else.
Keeping the armband warm for Tierney.
Am looking forward to your comment when Tierney hit a bad form ( not hoping he does though).
Tierney wont hit bad form. 🙂 He’ll have off games for sure, if he gets injured and remains out for a month +, he may take a bit of time to get back up to speed, but if he plays shit one game, he’ll be going out of his way to change that narrative asap, and he’ll do it! He has the mental strength and sheer drive to ensure bad form wont be a significant factor in his career. Also why I don’t think Bells would be a good captain @Sean as I dont think he has that mental strength… Read more »
Tierney is a cyborg, human frailties are dispensed. His balls are a combination of composite and titanium yet blood flows through them…blood different from all humans. He flips on and off his emotions at will and yet possessesssesss an unflappable love and commitment to The Arsenal that remains determinate even when all other such emotions have been shut down. His aura, his non human humanity is so intoxicating he can lead….without leading. Upon his shoulders shall be placed the hopes and expectations of all The Arsenal fandom….until they turn on him as they are so easily and willingly capable of.
Tierney kills men by the hundreds. And if HE were here, he’d consume these comments with fireballs from his eyes, and bolts of lightning from his arse
They can take our lives but they’ll never take our freedom!!
A little dismissive of the man who has carried us almost single handedly for two seasons
Not sure how well this will be received… and maybe it is for sentimental reasons. But as long as he keeps up the level of performances he has recently linking up with Saka (and provided he’s still at the club by the time aubameyang moves on of course), what do we think of Bellerin as captain after Auba? I get that Tierney’s performances have been at a higher level and he’s rightfully become hugely popular, but something about Hector as Arsenal captain just feels bloody great to me.
I know he’s from the academy but he doesn’t come off as an “arsenal man” through and through, especially since fans turned on him couple of seasons back. He’s now just playing for himself and his fashion designer ambitions.
Assuming Tierney isn’t (eventually) Napoli bound as some reports suggested recently? Best not get too far ahead of ourselves. Auba is the captain and we’ll see who is around when we need another. We should, at least, be thankful that we don’t have four or five “captains” anymore.
One of the more ridiculous stories I’ve seen gain traction in the shit heap that is sports journalism. May as well say ‘good team is interested in buying good player’. Makes no sense on any level, I wish we could all just stop clicking on this crap so they have to start working for their money!
Not quite sure how you know (stress “know”) that it’s ridiculous? He’s proving to be a good defender and Napoli are looking to improve their team to push on in Serie A. They were also interested, apparently, in the likes of Pepe, Gabriel and Leno before they joined us. Now, I’m not saying Tierney will go, it’s certainly unlikely at present, but that’s entirely different from dismissing the report of Napoli’s interest as “ridiculous” only on the basis that you think it is.
If Juve or RM or PSG or Barcelona expressed a serious interest in Tierney I would be worried.
But its Napoli.
How could they afford him? Why would be want to go there?
They can’t. He wouldn’t.
End of.
It’s just a nothing story. You say yourself it’s unlikely he’ll go, especially any time soon given he’s just arrived and his stock is rising so rapidly. So at this moment in time it is literally (as I said before) a fairly good team would buy a very good player if they could, which they almost certainly can’t and likely won’t try. I don’t see how that qualifies as a ‘report’.. Wasn’t having a go at you, it just irritates me that these sorts of things get so much traction. Am I imagining it or did a few years ago… Read more »
Tierney doesn’t like things warm
Sorry mate, looks like you got there ahead of me
Tierney doesn’t want a warm armband. Warm armbands are for soft southerners. 😉
Form is inevitably going to dip when you get a chance or two a game. Auba was performing way over xG since his arrival at Arsenal so something had to give.
Arteta has a real head scratcher when everyone’s fit now though. With Martinelli looking outstanding in Auba’s position and Laca finding form as a CF, it’s going to be really tough on someone.
I’m guessing Gabi makes way but he’ll be knocking hard on the door.
To be honest, I’ve never been worried about Auba’s goal drought cos the guy can sniff a goal. His positioning and runs is the reason he scores many goals. He simply know where to be to score a goal. I knew the goals will come when the team start to create chances.
He is getting slower in footraces
It’s what you do in the brain right ??
I’m a fan of Auba…….let me be clear bout that.
But in fairness, there were two stark moments in matches recently where auba was one on one and the sprint just didn’t happen.
I believe his pace will come back but putting hours on the clock doesn’t help.
I saw the same thing but I’m hoping it was just because it was his first game back after coming back from a calf injury. Time will tell but hard to imagine he lost three steps in 4 months time.
Arteta doesn’t scratch his head
You’re absolutely right. His hand would get stuck.
I’ll rephrase “Arteta has a real tummy tickler…”
Does he have velcro on those gloves?
What does he scratch then?
😂😂😂
*Cough* 3 years.
I like Auba’s attitude, thinking of his teammates despite having a dip in form himself and trying to work his way through the dip – shame other players don’t follow his lead!!!
Let’s stop playing him at CF. He doesn’t have the hold up play, and we don’t have a system that can work with a CF without it. He should start on the left but be allowed to drift and interchange Hopefully ESR / Saka being so good will take some opposition attention off Auba, opening up space for him to exploit Also with Martinelli kind of back, we can rotate the 2 a little which might help Auba regain some freshness. He plays basically every game for the full 90 and that’s got to have some impact on a 31… Read more »
Good point Public Elneny, Auba is 30+ and can’t play every game, in the same way Gabi can’t play every game due to his age and recent injuries – definitely makes sense to rotate these two on the left!! Question is do we rota Saka and Pepe or will-i-aint on the right? Can’t say I agree with blogs about selling Elneny though, he is a decent squad player and only cost £5m – it isn’t as if we have lots of options in the middle of the park, I’d say it is Partey, Xhaka, ESR and Elneny that are players… Read more »
I guess Mikel was kind of right to not give in immediately to playing him centrally when all the fans were clamouring for it.
Yeah I guess. But he was playing the left wing position far too rigidly before the injury, wasn’t getting in any goalscoring positions at all and most of his work was around the half way line I think it was a result of us being the back foot most games. In that case you can either drift off into the aether hoping the ball lands at your feet on a counter, like Ozil used to, or track back doing the basics and try to gain control. That’s not his game at all though so he looked a bit pointless for… Read more »
Interesting that you say we don’t have a system that can function without a CF that’s good at hold up play. I’ve argued that the most similar striker to Auba in the league is Jamie Vardy, and Leicester seem to do just fine with him at CF; 11 goals and 5 assists in 16 matches this season, aged 34. If Vardy can do it in the prem, I’m sure Auba can as well. Lacazette is more likely than not to leave at the end of the season, so you’d think getting Auba to work at CF might end up being… Read more »
Better get back on track soon auba, or you are gonna be the next ozil to this ungrateful lot.
Hmmm. I don’t think it’s “ungrateful” to expect that very highly paid professionals do what they’re paid for on a consistent basis – that’s consistent, not every game of course. We’ve had a number of such players at the club in recent years that haven’t done that – no names, no pack drill – and it’s not unreasonable for fans (who help to pay their wages in “normal” times) to be a little cynical if another comes along. That said, I certainly don’t put Auba into that category and I’m sure he’ll be back on form soon.
looks like he’s lost his pace over the past few weeks
specifically, speed of thought (IMO).
He did have a calf injury before Christmas, so maybe he’s being smart about not pushing it.
He will be back, form is temporary class is permanent
I see Auba as a similar player to Jamie Vardy. Who tries to play off the shoulder of the last man or arrive in the box late for tap ins. Vardy is still scoring at an impressive rate, even at his age so Auba will get back amongst it. We just need to find him more and play faster football.
He can do more than what Vardy does such as, scoring a curler from the out of the box, a worldie and he’s good with free kick as well.
I dont want to praise another player too much, but Vardy has scored the odd worldie as well. Point is they are both quick despite their age, both like running in behind and both arrive late to finish. If Vardy can still do it, Auba can and will find his form again. With him back firing again, I have more hope for he remainder of the season.
Still a world class player, needs to work on getting back that extra yard of pace and the goals will come flooding back.
“Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang admits his scoring problems have weighed heavy on his mind this season but as club captain he’s done his best to bring positivity to the Arsenal dressing room” If it was positivity for the dressing room we were specifically after? Surely we could have got in some cheerleaders for a fraction of the cost? I did warn that at 31 he was going to dip physically at some point, and we should move him on and invest our money in a younger player on the way up, rather than a player who was due to come down. I… Read more »
I think we’ve got to get over this ‘football ceases at 30’ malarkey. Aguero is 32, Messi is 33, Vardy is 34, Ronaldo is 35/36?, Ibrahimovic is 37 I think. All these players would walk into our squad if not our first team. While there are a number who cannot compete, I don’t think we should automatically write off Auba as worthless either for us or in the transfer market in the future. What seems to be key to success is managing their game time/effort, a bit of adaptability on their part and using their expertise instead of their physical… Read more »
Ibrahimovic is 39 actually. Just to prove your point.
If Aubameyang’s contract is worth £48mill over 3 years Had we taken £30mill? Thats £78mill to invest over 3 years or £110 over 5 years We could have signed a £55mill player, who’s 23, on £5mill p/a, on a 5 year deal That’s an investment of £80mill over 5 years, not 3 over 3years it’s an investment of £70million But where in 3 years Aubameyang will be 34, and hold no resale value The 23yr old will be 26, still have 2 years on his deal And provided we’ve invested that money wisely? He’ll still hold value. If Willian costs… Read more »
The difference, is that he is not in denial. With a certain other player, subpar performances were in the eyes of the beholder. Always.
May be unlike certain others, Auba is judged according to the number of goals he scores.
So are these certain others immune to statistical judgement? Say for example, assists?
I think both should be done in context rather than scapegoating..
Enjoy, Auba, enjoy a lot the situation. Özil is still here and still the target of Arsenal PR. Once he’ll be gone, your £400 000 per week and obvious lack of according performances may well see you becoming the next scapegoat.
Notice how very few people are slagging Auba off because he doesn’t constantly try undermining what the manager is doing, doesn’t pull sickies, and recognises his failings on the pitch
There’s a world of difference between the two, and that’s the reason Auba will get back to his best while Ozil’s career is over
Ozil has demonstrated his love for money over the love of the game. He could have played somewhere if he wanted to. Auba will be fine if we build a creative midfield and front line.
So if your boss paid you 350k a week on a contract that didn’t expire until June 2021, but ostracised you from working, you’d give up the job…..right?
Take your time, mate……
If I had $100 million saved, had my own clothing line, had a multimillion fan base who wanted to see me play, had teammates who were being negatively impacted both competitively and financially by my decisions, had a national fan base that would ensure my financial security for life, had many teams willing to pay me to play, had the ability to negotiate a very very very lucrative separation package wherein I still got much of my contract even if I left….yes mate, I would make a different choice than he has made.
Has it ever occurred to you that he might just actually be a man of his word – and when he signs a contract, he honours it? He has stated time and time again that he has wanted to play for us – yet people like you still accuse him of sitting on his salary – because you can’t be bothered to face facts and acknowledge that our manager screwed up big time by omitting him. But for ESR, Saka and Tierney, Arteta would be out of a job. Our current side gelling is a lucky accident and fuck all… Read more »
How exactly has Ozil undermined what Arteta is trying to achieve?
All he has done is state that he is available to play and publicly backed his teammates via social media?
Has he slagged off Arsenal? No.
Has he slagged off his teammates? No.
Has he slagged off Arteta? No.
Can you – and people like you – come up with a valid, reasoned explanation for your ignorant hatred of Mesut Ozil? No.
his body language tells a different story
Who cares about ‘body language’ for fuck’s sake….?!
All top players get the hump every now and then if they’ve had the misfortune of being surrounded by mediocre teammates.
Ozil had to stand by and watch as fellow midfielders Rosicky, Cazorla, Wilshere and Ramsey were allowed to leave and weren’t replaced adequately.
He subsequently had to put up instead with Xhaka, Elneny and Ceballos.
Then Arteta drops him and people wonder why we were flirting with the relegation places before Christmas.
No, there’s little direct comparison between the two. Auba has proved his worth to the club (despite the recent dip in form), I fear Ozil has not. It’s a question of attitude, not money, that’s the difference here.
Three FA Cups in four seasons (we would have won more if our defence hadn’t been so shite) were clearly not enough then.
He will.
By a lot of the Ozil hating numpties on this page who wouldn’t know a world class player from a pub player.
I’m sure he would be a positive influence in and around the team regardless of whether he was captain or not, that’s clearly just the kind of guy he is.
I’m old school in so much as in general I’m not a fan of forwards as captains. I think in the long run it would be better for the team moving forward if KT, Holding or Partey where groomed for the role and that additional pressure was taken off Auba’s shoulders so he could concentrate on the goals.
KT is the future Captain based upon his approach to training and the game. It is clear to see. He isn’t afraid to let players know they aren’t doing enough during the game, he’s doing that now.
Auba is absolutely world class and has proven it over and over again during his career. If someone thinks the magic act of writing his name on a piece of paper changes that, they have a more long-term problem than Arsenal will have with Auba’s form. I also don’t think that he got old all of a sudden, instead the service he got before the emergence of ESR was simply abysmal and that would negatively impact on any striker. But if ESR, Tierney, Saka etc. can continue to provide the service they did in the recent weeks, I see no… Read more »
Agreed!
Hopefully so. Time shall tell, but we hope for a much better 2nd half season for him and the entire team as well.
All strikers go through a bad spell.
He’ll be back – and probably stronger than ever, once he gets his eye in.
The major difference is that he now has ESR and Saka to create the chances for him that Ozil used to.
Not a pair of sideways and backwards passing plums like Willian and Ceballos.
Not fair on Ceballos, he’s an incisive passer when there’s a reasonable level of movement ahead of him. The difference between Elneny against Brighton and Newcastle, and Ceballos in the West Brom game between was night and day
I think he’s deeply underrated
Possibly, but it’s highly unlikely that Ceballos will be with us after his loan period ends.
In any case, Ceballos himself has said that he wants to fight for a place at Real Madrid. So, yeah, as Biggles said, there is very low likelihood of him being an Arsenal player past this summer; beyond trite social media interactions.
For someone who is supposed to be part of this ‘all-new’ high-press no-more-shrinking-violets malarkey, he’s bundled off the ball far too easily.
If Arteta can turn his nose up to Ozil, then he can turn it up to Ceballos while he’s at it.
Comparing the “ fight “ in Ozil to Ceballos is a joke. Özil has immense talent that Ceballos aspires to. Ceballos has a fighter mentality that is either inherited or inspired by events of both being passed over/discounted or challenged. Arteta challenged Ceballos last year. Ceballos rose to that challenge. He helped Arsenal win and make Europa through work rate and willpower. No matter his future he earned every minute he played and he earned our respect and appreciation no matter his limitations, perceived or real.
He’s not good enough going forward. He loses the ball far too easily and is a major reason we began this season with our worst start for 40 years.
He doesn’t possess the skill level, the vision or the physical attributes that are seen elsewhere in players such as Saka and ESR.
I’ll be glad to see the back of him.
If RM is serious about pursuing Mbappe, they will have to sell a number of players and I suspect Ceballos would be one of them.
As long as they don’t sell him to us.
We’ve wasted enough money already on Willian.
Well said. We really need his goals (in addition to Laca’s) as we’re not getting many from anyone else on a regular basis. Hopefully his recent one in the FA Cup will be the start of a much needed return to form.
Im backing him to find his form again. Hell we kinda have to lol.
Announce Diego Costa!!!
It’s a fine line when asking for that extra ten percent from players. They may already be working to full capacity in other areas and it can impact them. With influence in the dressing room there isn’t so much need for Auba to provide inspiration in the pitch, which used to be his forte. Perhaps time to let others take the lead with their performances. Senior players are unable to provide support and leadership. Players such as Xhaka and Laca are struggling for a place in the side and Partey and Tierney though talented and able to influence games aside… Read more »
Nice to see Aubameyang being so candid and the green shoots are there… with a squad almost entirely injury free and multiple key performers emerging once again, we have a lot going for us at the moment.