Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang takes out the sulphate

At 35, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has already lived several lives as a footballer. The Gabonese notably had an experience at AC Milan during his youth before returning to France where he played for several clubs, and really exploded in the jersey of AS Saint-Étienne. A club which was a perfect springboard to fly to the Bundesliga and Borussia Dortmund, where he piled up the goals. Subsequently, the Laval native made the big leap to the Premier League and Arsenal, where he signed in 2018. If his first years in the English capital went like a dream, he also experienced some lows at the Gunners. In 2021, he was singled out for a disciplinary offense. In fact, PEA had returned late after a trip, where he had gone to pick up his sick mother in France. This round trip had been authorized by Arsenal. But his delay was the last straw for Mikel Arteta.

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A painful separation with Arsenal and Arteta

In the columns of The Athleticthe player returned to this episode: “It was me who made a mistake. I should have returned the evening before, but I arrived in the morning. I didn't say I was going to miss the plane because I was preoccupied with my mother's business (medical exams). I went straight to a team meeting. Everything was normal. After that he (Arteta) said: 'come with me'. That's when he started screaming. He said I couldn't do that because I was the captain and it wasn't acceptable. He said I stabbed him in the back. I don't know why he said that. I was really upset because it wasn't true and he knew why I got on the plane. He knew the reason and what was happening, he knew I was struggling that year. I expected help from him, not for him to kill me like that.”

He continues: “when I'm late, it's my fault, no problem. I always apologized. But in this case, I will never apologize. For taking my mother from Laval to London? No. Even if I arrived one day late, I would never apologize. We understand or we don't understand. Otherwise, don’t give the day off or tell people they can’t fly.” But the English media explains that this is not the first time that Aubameyang has been late. The striker, who was not on time during the derby against Tottenham in 2021, did not deny it. But he admitted that certain teammates had benefited from more leniency from the Spanish coach. “We leave the car at the stadium, we take the bus to go to the hotel. I didn't miss the bus, they were waiting for me. There was an accident near my house, maybe I should have left earlier, but we don't know what will happen. He was angry because it’s an important match.”

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PEA was in full spleen

He adds: “When we got to the hotel he called me to his room and told me I wouldn't play. He was strict. The rules are the rules. I felt hurt. I had tears in my eyes because I really wanted to play. I didn't want to hurt anyone. The next day we had a meeting and I stood up in front of everyone to apologize. He also came to my house to talk, because he didn't want it to be chaos. I said to myself, “Everything will be fine.” But from that moment on, it was never the same.” In full spleen, notably for personal reasons, the Gabonese was not at his best, having extended his lease with the Londoners a few months before. A choice that was not easy for him. “To be honest, at the time I wanted to leave. For me, it was time to find a new challenge. I've done my time. It was great, but I needed a change. It had been four years, I had done a good job and maybe it was time to leave things like this, like this, so that people remember me as a good Arsenal player. I felt like I had to leave because if I stayed, something would go wrong.”

But a meeting with Mikel Arteta convinced him:“He said to me: 'I think you can leave a legacy.' I think it was the first time I heard that word in English. He said to me: 'If you stay, you could become an icon, like the big names at Arsenal.' I started to change my vision. He and the fans convinced me to stay. But at first I wanted to leave. That's where it started to get chaotic, because when you go against your heart, maybe that's where I made my mistake. I felt it little by little. Little by little, I started to give up. Sometimes there are more important things than football. Maybe people don't realize it, because they think football is the most important thing. (But) that’s not true.” If everything has not been rosy during their collaboration, Arteta and Aumbameyang are not on bad terms either. PEA, however, believes that Arsenal lack a goalscorer to win the title. And with humor, he admitted that it is he who the English miss. In addition to Arteta, PEA, who admitted that he loved his 6 months at Barça, also collaborated with Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea.

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Blues in Chelsea too

The two men knew each other well since their collaboration in Dortmund. It was also for TT that he joined the Blues. But a few days after his arrival, the German was sacked.“ “I remember that day because I didn’t recognize him (Tuchel). He wasn't the guy I knew a few years ago. We had a close relationship. He was the only guy who really understood me in Dortmund. At Chelsea it felt like something was wrong. I felt like he wasn't making the most of his time. We lost (1-0) and he was angry. Usually he goes crazy but he went into the locker room and left. I was like, 'That's not the guy I know. That's very strange.' The next day he was fired.” Subsequently, he worked with Graham Potter. Things did not get better and PEA was even put aside due to the large number of players in the Blues squad.

“That's when I started saying, 'OK, this is very disrespectful.' They tried to send me on loan to the United States. I said, “No chance.” I felt angry. From that moment on, I said to myself: “The season is already over for me.” I just worked out to stay in shape. I knew I wasn’t going to play.” Frank Lampard tried to revive it, but in the end the Englishman also put it aside. “Towards the end of the season he spoke to me again and said: 'What are your feelings? I'm sorry, Auba. I can't really help you.' I understood that it did not come from him but from above (…) They (the leaders, editor’s note) made a hell of a mess. It didn't even look like a football locker room, it looked more like a rugby locker room. Hakim Ziyech, Denis Zakaria, Kalidou Koulibaly, Romelu Lukaku… It was good not to be alone. We laughed every day, so it was okay.”

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OM motivated him again

Aubameyang, who admits not having had this strong link with Chelsea, was able to relaunch in Marseille last year. “I took a photo at a Chelsea match when I wasn't in the team. I said to myself: 'We'll see next season if I'm a supporter or a player'. I arrived in Marseille with the mentality: 'You will see the real Aubameyang'.” But in the Marseille city, he also experienced ups and downs, especially after the 0-0 draw in Lille. “I said to myself, ‘I can’t accept this. Now I'm going to change the way I play. I'm going to be crazier'. I played angrily. This was the year I showed everyone who I was.” Despite his attachment to OM, PEA decided to leave last summer to take on a new challenge in Saudi Arabia. A choice that he fully accepts.

“People think it’s a closed country with severe restrictions. That's the opinion there (in the West), but when you come here it's totally different. The mentality is very open. Despite the various controversies surrounding Saudi Arabia, this did not weigh on his mind when making his decision. ” No way. I'm really passionate about football and, as long as I'm a player, I'll only think about football, that's all. When I retire, maybe I'll think about other things. But when I decided to come, I didn't think about it (…) I can understand how they see life. They can have their opinion, but I also have mine. My choice only concerns football, not political situations and all that… I didn't see anything that shocked me and made me say that it was a mistake to come here. Author of 7 goals in 13 appearances in all competitions, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang feels good at Al-Qadsiah and in the Saudi Pro League. That’s the main thing.