What’s the story?
According to German news outlet SportBild, Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is set to move to the Chinese Super League in a deal that could be worth over £70m. Tianjin Quanjian, the same club that employs stars such as Alexandre Pato and Axel Witsel, are reportedly interested in signing the Gabon international.
If he does agree to move to the Chinese club, Aubameyang will sign a deal worth £26.5m per year (close to £510,000 per week). The 28-year-old has been linked with a number of European clubs such as Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool. Chelsea were also linked with the striker but there was no concrete interest in the player.
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Aubameyang currently has a contract with the club until 2020, which is why the transfer fee is so high. He had last signed a five-year contract extension in 2015.
The 2016/17 season was the best season of his career, scoring 40 goals in all competitions. 31 of those goals came in the Bundesliga alone where he even picked up the league’s top goalscorer award but it wasn’t enough to help Dortmund win the league as the club finished third behind Bayern Munich and newly-promoted RB Leipzig. He also got on the scoresheet seven times in the UEFA Champions League.
And just yesterday, he posted a message on Instagram that read “Ready for new adventures".
Also read: Modeste move to Tianjin Quanjian off amid Aubameyang speculation
The heart of the matter
Tianjin Quanjian would not be paying just the £70m fee, though. With a new rule in force to curb high spending, the Chinese FA had introduced a new rule in May that would effectively see clubs pay double the transfer fee. Any club that posts losses will have to pay 100% tax on new signings that goes into a fund aimed at developing Chinese youngsters.
This new rule came into effect on 19 June and it did throw a spanner in the works for clubs looking to sign elite players such as Chelsea’s Diego Costa and even Manchester United skipper Wayne Rooney. However, the report also states that the multi-billionaire club owner and chairman Shu Yuhui is looking to bring the striker to China at any cost.
Video: Aubameyang’s Bundesliga goals in 2016/17
Author’s take
If this deal does go through, it would be sad to see a player of Aubameyang’s calibre move to China when he is clearly playing at his peak. The speedy striker has become one of the most lethal frontmen in Europe and any club would love to secure his services.
Sadly, it is an age where money talks and Chinese clubs’ deep pockets are enough to turn any heads. No European club can even hope to match the wages on offer to Aubameyang. Even the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi do not earn so much in weekly wages.
Having once had the ambition to play for a club like Real Madrid, one can only shake their head if he does end up wearing a Tianjin Quanjian shirt and playing in half-empty stadiums in China.
