Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has claimed that he has nothing to feel guilty about after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang claimed that the Spaniard was to blame for their relationship break.
The Gabon international has been the club captain since the Spaniard took charge of the club back in December 2019, and they were believed to have had a positive relationship for much of their time together, but things had gone sour over the last 12 months.
It is uncertain where this breakdown started, but it became known for the first time when the Spaniard dropped his captain against north London rivals Spurs last season, with Auba left as an unused substitute for the big game victory.
There has been some other issues since, although there is no official comments from either party to admit to which claims are true or false, but the relationship took a drastic turn when the manager dropped him from the playing squad ahead of Southampton in December, with him then stripped of the club captaincy in the days after.
Aubameyang has since departed for Barcelona, and has since claimed that his only problem was with Arteta, and the manager has now pleaded his innocence.
With all the information on offer, I think there is no question that Aubameyang had stepped out of line on more than one occasion, but it would be naive to believe that the manager played no part in the downfall of their relationship, and whether his decisions work out for the club will reveal themselves in the long run.
At this point, I have to believe that this situation couldn’t be helped, and that the team is better off without the distraction of Auba’s antics, and that the team will be fine without him.
Do you think the majority of the blame lies with the player, or will the manager have to answer for his actions also?
Patrick