Arsenal are reportedly set to offer a stunning player-plus-cash deal to sign Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund this month
According to a report by The Sun, Arsenal are prepared to offer Borussia Dortmund £30 million plus out of favour striker Olivier Giroud in order to land Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the winter transfer window. The Gabonese striker has handed a transfer request to end his stint at Signal Iduna Park this month.
Aubameyang has blossomed into one of the best strikers in the world since joining Borussia Dortmund from Saint-Etienne. His progress has been all the more promising over the last 30 months or so, with the player becoming a prolific powerhouse, with very few surpassing his goalscoring prowess.
The Gabon international has been at his best this season as well, despite the campaign being mired in a spate of controversial issues. In all, Aubameyang has 21 goals and 3 assists in 23 appearances across all competitions, although he now seems to have burned all his bridges at Dortmund.
The club’s sporting director Michael Zorc recently expressed his frustration towards Aubameyang’s attitude, claiming that the player is ‘becoming untolerable’. His future has now been thrown into severe doubt, with reports of the 28-year-old handing a transfer request running rampant. And Arsenal could take advantage of the delicate situation.
Borussia Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: “At some point you can’t tolerate it [lack of discipline from Aubameyang] anymore, I don’t know what’s going on inside his head.” pic.twitter.com/MfQvI4hJlE
— Squawka News (@SquawkaNews) January 15, 2018
The Gunners appear set to lose Alexis Sanchez this month even though his destination appears to be uncertain. The Chilean’s imminent departure would leave Arsenal woefully short of goals, with Alexandre Lacazette the only regular capable of finding the back of the net on a consistent basis.
Aubameyang can help solve that problem, but that alone wouldn’t be his impact in Arsene Wenger’s side. The player can also provide a pacy outlet, while also possessing the ability to play out wide as adeptly as through the middle, which could see him combine with Lacazette and Mesut Ozil in the Arsenal attack.
And while he is prone to being mired in controversy at an alarming regularity, Arsene Wenger is just the kind of manager to tend that dangerous tendency. Arsenal are now ready to test the resolve of Dortmund by tabling a spectacular player-plus-cash deal to secure the player’s services.
The Gunners are unwilling to match the Bundesliga outfit’s £60 million asking price, but they can pay Dortmund £30 million plus Olivier Giroud. The Frenchman was reportedly wanted by Die Schwarzgelben last summer as well, before a move failed to materialise.
With Giroud struggling to muster up regular game time at Arsenal, a move to Dortmund might just give him a silver lining in his pursuit of staking claim to a place in Didier Deschamps’ World Cup squad. It now remains to be seen if Dortmund are willing to agree the deal, paving the way for Aubameyang to join Arsenal.
