Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been making big headlines but not for the best reasons. Arsenal have stripped him of captaincy following an alleged disciplinary breach, leaving his future up in the air. And Barcelona were linked with the Gabon international again.
Aubameyang, who has had a fantastic start to life in the Premier League when he moved to North London in winter of 2018, has supposedly returned later than expected from a sanctioned holiday and Mikel Arteta decided to remove the armband from him.
The former Borussia Dortmund player’s future at the Emirates seems to be hanging by a thread, but he may find thedoors open at Camp Nou instead. El Blaugrana, however,lackthe money to afford a transfer fee, which is why they could propose a swap deal.
Barcelona are reportedly willing to trade for Arsenal striker Aubameyang
Following Barca’sUEFA Champions League crash that will see them play in the Europa League, Xavi Hernandez needs to make changes fast and new faces must be part of the immediate rebuild he has to conduct.
According to The Independent, Barcelona have switched their attention to Aubameyang amid his uncertain situation at Arsenal. But the Catalans’financial problems would prevent them from affording his transfer fee and the Gabonese is also unwilling to take a paycut.That’s why Barca would consider offering Ousmane Dembele in exchange.
Ousmane Dembele’s deal with Barcelona is up next summer. (Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)
With the Frenchman’s contract running out next summer, the Cules are worried that Dembele leaves for nothing at the end of the season. Xavi is reportedly keen on tying him down to a new contract but if he continues stalling, Barca won’t have other option but to try and get something in return.
His departure would mean a huge reduction to their wage bill and also allow them to afford Aubameyang’s demands. His level at Arsenal may have droppedfor the last two seasons but he still has potential to get back to his best. Besides,Xavi lacksdependable options up front, withSergio ‘Kun’ Aguero‘s retirement coming as another huge blow.
