Axed Arsenal skipper Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s agent has already been holding transfer discussions with multiple teams, while the Gunners have set their sights on a preferred replacement.
The Gabonese forward was stripped of the captaincy on Tuesday after a long list of disciplinary breaches, the latest which involved a trip to France last week which he returned late from.
For Arsenal and Mikel Arteta it was the final straw and they will now appoint a new captain who takes the role more seriously.
Arteta refused to put a timeframe on when Aubameyang might return to the squad, with the player not selected against West Ham on Wednesday, and his future in London looks increasingly precarious.
But according to football.london, Aubameyang has not been entirely content at the club and his agent had already been investigating the possibility of leaving the Emirates.
Prior to being stripped of the captaincy, the former Dortmund star’s agent held meetings in Italy, Spain and most recently Paris to discuss transfers, and those talks are likely to ramp up after the latest incident.
Even if Arsenal let Aubameyang leave for free, though, not many teams will be able to afford the attacker, who is the highest-paid player at the club after signing a contract believed to be worth up to £300,000-a-week.
For his part, the Gabon star is believed to be unhappy with the public manner in which the issue has been dealt with, according to reports.
Arsenal had been in the market for a new striker to compete with and eventually succeed Aubameyang and the need to bring in more firepower will intensify now, particularly with Lacazette and Nketiah likely to leave for free.
Everton’s Calvert-Lewin, who has been injured for much of the campaign so far, is emerging as the club’s key target, though a number of players are being looked at.
Asked if Aubameyang could leave Arsenal in the January window, Arteta said yesterday: ‘Really, we have never discussed something like this, and when players are under difficulty – or the team is under difficulty – what we have to be is supportive.’
