Arsenal have been in talks to sign Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund over the past couple of weeks, but with the deal threatening to fall through, his current club are set to field him today.
The Gabon international has been in amazing form this term despite having fallen out with the BVB, scoring 21 goals in his 23 appearances in all competitions, and is claimed to be keen to give his all for his club this weekend despite the ongoing transfer saga.
“It comes down to what I’ve said in recent days,” Stoger told the club’s official website. “If Auba trained well all week, if he is clear and focused, then he is indispensable to our squad.
“Auba has had a very good, very focused and professional week of training behind him and has always given the impression he wants to give everything against Freiburg for BVB.
“Because that’s the case, we would like to use his quality, of course.”
We will all be awaiting the 14:30 (GMT) kick-off to see whether the BVB will in fact start Aubameyang, and should he play and pick up an injury, that would be the most Arsenal thing to happen in history.
We seem to be our own worst enemy in the transfer windows, and I don’t understand why we can’t simply pay those few extra million needed to to get the deal over the line, especially when it was only a matter of five months back when we were close to signing Thomas Lemar for £90 Million, over £30 Million more than the supposed asking price for PEA.
If he scores a hat-trick the deal could also come under question, with his host club possibly asking for more money, or even refusing to allow him to leave due to his importance.
Surely it would be best for all parties to wrap up the transfer with ample time, as we could end up losing out if Dortmund fail to sign a replacement in time, just like the Alexis Sanchez move in the summer.
Will the BVB start PEA? Could talk of the striker playing be a bargaining chip?
Pat J