Arteta willing to sell Aubameyang

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta will not stand in the way of captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leaving the club this month, 90min understands.

Aubameyang missed the club’s season opener against Brentford after being ruled out late on with an illness, along with Alexandre Lacazette, and the pair’s involvement in the fixture against Chelsea this Sunday is uncertain.

Arsenal signed Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund in January 2018, and the now Arsenal captain agreed a contract extension with the club last year. He has two years remaining on that contract, worth around £350,000 a week, and stands as one of the highest paid players in the Premier League.

90min has learned however that Aubameyang and Arteta have had disagreements in recent months, and now serious doubt remains over how much football the 32-year-old will see before the transfer window closes.

ALSO READ:  Organisers pledge ‘new model’ for 2024 Paris Games

Club chief Edu is working behind the scenes on a possible exit plan for the Gabon star. However, as seen with a number of players on big wages this summer, it is not always that easy to move players who carry a such a hefty salary. That is certainly the case with Aubameyang.

The financial commitments make it hugely difficult for Arsenal to find a club to deal with.

Barcelona have had a long-standing interest in the player, but their current financial situation means it would be unlikely they would take on such a huge wage packet.

ALSO READ:  Organisers pledge ‘new model’ for 2024 Paris Games

It has been suggested that Barcelona could swap Philippe Coutinho, who is on a similar wage and is of interest to Arsenal, but 90min has been told that would be a hugely difficult situation to agree with all sides. As it stands the two clubs have not talked directly about any such deal.

Arsenal now find themselves in a situation where they could again be paying their top wage earner to sit on the sidelines; something they had to go through with Mesut Ozil for more than a year towards the end of his stay at the club.