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Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has flourished since joining Arsenal in 2018 and has proven his mettle as a world-class striker. His top-notch performances have served as a respite for the fans in the last two seasons as the London giants have largely been plagued by a series of mediocre displays from the team.
The 30-year-old striker's impressive performances have also left many people wondering whether he is too good for them, with his future at the club now emerging as a hot topic.
The current state of his contract with the Gunners indicates that the next few months will prove to be crucial in determining his future at the Emirates Stadium, which looks precarious at the moment.
The Gabon international's current deal with the club expires in the summer of 2021, which puts manager Mikel Arteta in a tough situation of making the call on whether the side should cash in on their captain in the summer or risk losing him for free in 2021.
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Aubameyang is one of the most prolific strikers in Europe currently and his ability to deliver in clutch situations makes him a massive asset for Arsenal. Having said that, we take a look at the three reasons why the Gunners cannot afford to sell the striker this summer.
3. Aubameyang's departure would leave Arsenal toothless in the goalscoring department
The former Borussia Dortmund striker is the primary source of goals for Arsenal across all competitions. Remove him and his goals from the picture and the Gunners would be languishing at 19th place in the Premier League.
His 17 goals account for a total of 43% of all the goals scored by Arteta's men in the English top-flight this season, with the striker single-handedly responsible for winning 16 points for them.
The 30-year-old has proven himself to be one of the most clinical strikers in Arsenal's history, already boasting the second-best goal-to-minute ratio in the Premier League era. He has also bagged 49 goals in just 75 league appearances, which has set him on the way of becoming the fastest player to reach the 50-goal mark for the Gunners and fifth-best overall.
The Gunners have lacked a reliable sharpshooter in front of goal for quite some time now and thus losing Aubameyang, despite the probability of his sale bringing in cash in the short-term, will hurt them in the long run.
2. Mikel Arteta has no viable replacement lined up to fill Aubameyang's void in the summer
On paper, it seems Arsenal have a pretty solid frontline with players like Alexandre Lacazette, Nicolas Pepe, Gabriel Martinelli and of course Aubameyang in their ranks. However, as things stand, it has mostly been a one-man show led by the brilliant Aubameyang, whose exploits in front of the goal even won him the Premier League Golden Shoe in his first full season at the club in the 2018-19 campaign.
While Lacazette may not offer a similar rate of goal returns as Aubameyang, we have seen that his real strength lies in setting up goals and general team play.
Meanwhile, Martinelli is not quite ready to step into Aubameyang's shoes but he is a promising talent who will be capable of producing 20-plus goal returns in a season if nurtured properly. On the other hand, the Gunners heavily invested in Nicolas Pepe last summer but the Ivory Coast international has not impressed so far.
Replacing Aubameyang in such short notice will be a headache for Arteta, not only because securing an accomplished striker would not come cheap but also because the prospect of no UEFA Champions League football would prove to be a huge roadblock in their search for a replacement.
1. His departure will hurt team morale
Aubameyang is one of the most important figures in Arteta's plan for rebuilding Arsenal and the fact that the former Manchester City tactician handed the Gabonese speedster the captain's armband in less than a year-and-a-half at the club serves as viable proof of this.
The forward is a great team player and links up well with everyone on the pitch and his strike partnership with Lacazette is very well known. At the same time, he is also known to be a popular figure in the dressing room.
He is one of the most experienced players in the Gunners' squad and has taken the likes of Martinelli, Bukayo Saka and several of the club's youngsters under his wing, which makes him as important off the pitch as he is on it.
Aubameyang is also a player who all the others look up to and losing him at such a crucial juncture where the club is struggling to re-establish themselves could lead to a domino effect of an exodus. Although he could eventually be replaced as a striker, it's hard to think of any player who could replicate all that he does behind the scenes.
