Are Arsenal stars losing belief in the club?

Arsenal are looking embarrassingly likely to lose both Pierre-Emerick Aubameang and Bukayo Saka in the summer, with both players having turned down contract offers this term.

The duo have been amongst the most consistent Gunners this season, if the THE most consistent, yet our club has so far failed to convince either to sign a new deal to keep them at the club beyond 2021.

If no deals can be agreed before the summer, we will likely have to endure a stressful transfer window in which we may be forced to accept an exit for both key players, despite a strong need for both players to stay to push up the table next term.

Our club has previously stated that every player has their price, and IF the two complete the season without agreeing new terms, we will more than likely be forced to sell at risk of losing both for free in 12 months time.

What I do not understand is why Arsenal Football Club are continually allowing themselves to get into these situations.

We had this in 2018 when both Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil were allowed to run into the final six months of both of their deals, which ended up with the Chilean being swapped with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, losing our best player to Man United, while the former German international held us to ransom for a whopping £350,000 per week deal, one we are paying the price for now.

After this instance, our club claimed that they would not allow such contract situations to develop, and Dick Law was sacked as our club contract negotiator, but here we are once again, with two of our three most valuable players so far refusing contract offers with just over 12 months remaining on their deals.

OK, the club may not have foreseen how much of an impact Saka could have had in his breakthrough season, but what doesn’t make sense is how the 18 year-old could have turned down a new offer from us, allowing himself to stay on his current £3,000 per week wages unless our club simply was undervaluing the young England Under-19 star.

The youngster has featured in as many league matches as Ozil this season, and he obviously needs a little level of reality in his wage offering, but how badly must the club have undervalued him, for him to refuse and stay on the measly wage he is on?

Aubameyang is more understandable, as he has previously stated his wishes to play in Spain, and for Real Madrid due to family ties, wishes he expressed even before joining Arsenal, but I watch this guy play week-in week-out and he is smiling. Aubz loves playing for Arsenal, loves scoring goals, and you can see the rapor he has with his team-mates in wanting to succeed, and I do not see why if Arsenal were willing to pay him the wages he deserved, why he would leave.

Robin Van Persie recently claimed that he didn’t want to quit the club in order to join Man United, but that he spoke to club officials on how the club needed to improve aspects of the club in order to succeed, and that he got a resounding no to a number of points, forcing him to seek success elsewhere.

I fear that Arsenal as a club are losing grip on their ‘big club’ title, and should we lose both Saka and Aubameyang, neither will be successfully replaced by players of the same ability and potential.

Are the club showing a lack of ambition? Can the club finally back the right manager in the coming window? Could Arteta persuade both to stay this summer?

Patrick

Tags Bukayo Saka Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

14 Comments

  1. Patrick, It is a mistake to confuse Auba’s naturally smiling and sunny outgoing personality with him being happy to stay with us. I spend a great deal of my time laughing and joking yet am as serious minded as they come.

    I do not know for sure if Auba wants to go but it appears so and I think we have to start facing up the the ongoing fact that our owner’s meanness is a longpast and still ongoing problem where keeping players happy are concerned. Not only with their own wage but in Kroenkes reluctance to spend money strengthening the team and squad.

    That is a massive downer to any ambitious player. I believe we will probably lose Auba, though only on balance, as the new financial realities MAY prevent ANY possible suitors paying enough money for his sale.
    Saka is more serious a possible loss and the club SHOULD give him a massive rise right now to keep him. If we lose him that will be a major mistake or should I say instead , “just the latest of our constant transfer mistakes”! Sigh!

    1. Jon. I wrote a long bla-bla yesterday on the subject “Should Asn’l fear Saka interest from Liverpool?” (14:39). Badly written and with many misspellings, but I would appreciate if You red it. I never read the articles on this site (News Now), just spontaneous react on the headlines. That’s my style. It’s mostly about “null and void”.

      1. Sory Robert but that thread seems to have disappeared now. But if you care to rewrite it inTHIS thread I’ll certainly reply.

        1. Hi, Jon. It’s to long to rewrite. But it’s still there. “14:39 Sat, 25 Apr” (click). I guess I suffer from a fascination for Jürgen Klopp’s ambition. It’s an ambition to conquer the world, an ambition so devastating that you have to lose it all. Is this a german quality? I don’t think so. There’s no need for historical parallels. But the Swedish king Charles XII was that kind of conqueror, so was Napoleon Bonaparte, and der Adolf.

  2. Sell them both, better to get something for them then allow them to leave on free. Auba can be replaced there are a lot of other options out there. We survived in top 4 before he was here so I am sure some one else will step up or goals will be divided among the team. As far as Saka is concerned, I don’t get it. He didn’t even play the whole season n he has not got a proven track record on high level to disctate things. World has seen so many promising one season wonders before. If he is not willing to sign a new contract then sell him as well…it’s not we are loosing young Messi or Ronaldo. He is good then English ppl are renowned for hyping up the players then see them fail.

    1. It’s all these player agents, in most cases they convince their clients to go for the club offering the highest wages, cause then they get the best commission. Soccer as a sport I am afraid are becoming predictable its all about money, those who get too much like the premier league and those that can barely survive like the lower league teams.

  3. I usually call for restraint on wages but Saka is our future. Being on a basic amount then I am hopeful that the club realise his potential and make him a sensible offer that he can’t refuse.

    As the world of football has been turned upside down with the pandemic I am not sure that Auba would get the salary he wants anywhere at the moment. He may just have to accept that it was all a matter of bad timing and stay.

    What if football did not start properly until 2021? Auba would be getting that bit older still and would he still be worth the big money? Just a thought.

  4. Saka has to allow himself develop to a better player first , money and greed can make him find himself in a deep pit. My advice to him

  5. Saka’s got potential and he will be a good player wherever he goes.
    And Auba may be looking at an european trophy before he retires so maybe that is why he is not negotiating.
    And these are still reports and none of them have had official talks with any other clubs.

    And about them losing belief in the team,i think both of them have not played in their natural positions and i highly doubt they ever will at arsenal.MA is doing what he can at the moment and is proving quite effective but maybe the players are having second thoughts.But like many gooners say if the heart is somewhere else let them go no matter how big the names are.

  6. I would say that we are losing faith in the Arsenal players. The shining stars of our lousy campaign so far has been Gabriel, Saka and Auba, and the latter two wish to move, the rest are utter useless, on a high wage and high transfer fee. The only one I feel that has a desire to play is Mkhitaryan as he seems willing to take a pay cut to move elsewhere. The rest are a bunch of parasites, clinging to our beloved club, taking away weekly wages and giving nothing valuable back in return. Arsene failed us, Unai failed us, Freddie was caretaker, Mikel is trying to achieve something ( with Mesut?). The club should have been ruthless with the rest. Would not be surprised if Gabriel, Saka and Auba moved and the rest remained and would not blame them either. Casual hierarchy, joking heads on the training ground, smiley emojis after a draw or a loss.Pathetic

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