Neville not surprised flailing Arsenal are facing Aubameyang dilemma
Gary Neville has said that he is not surprised that Arsenal find themselves with a crucial decision to make on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s future in the coming months.
The striker has 13 months left on his deal in north London and after another – albeit protracted – season as arguably the club’s best player, his future is unclear.
Arsenal can either keep him in a bid to reach the top four next season but risk losing him for free next summer, or sell him soon for what would be a knockdown fee given the financial uncertainties surrounding the transfer market.
Aubameyang has been linked with Manchester United, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain in recent months, with previous reports claiming that Arsenal originally wanted £50million for him.
Speaking to Sky Sports’ The Football Show, Neville insisted that Arsenal made a “mistake” by only handing Aubameyang a three-and-a-half-year deal in January 2018.
“Arsenal find themselves in this position far too often,” the pundit said.
“I think a [three-and-a-half-year] deal for a player who cost £60m, you would at least want that fourth year just so you can control him if he does well in the first two seasons, which he obviously has.
“That’s the mistake that’s been made from day one with Aubameyang. The fact they are in this position now is through mistakes that have been made previously.
“I think Arsenal are in a position where the players can call the shots. They can keep him for another year, but then he would leave for nothing.”
Arsenal have established a reputation of allowing top players to leave in the final years of their contracts, with Aaron Ramsey departing for Juventus on a free transfer last summer.
In the past 10 years, Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil, Samir Nasri, Robin van Persie and Bacary Sagna have all followed suit, with only Ozil being kept on – at a sizeable cost to Arsenal’s wage bill.
As for Aubameyang, one report has claimed that the best Arsenal can hope for in a sale is around £20million, given that many clubs will exercise spending caps in the coming months.
Therefore, it has been claimed that the Gunners would only sanction his sale at the end of the season if the cost of a replacement striker is lower.
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