Maybe Aubameyang would have less pressure if he wasn’t the captain?

A new captain is a must if we are to get our Aubameyang back!

As much as I love Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang, I don’t think he is captain material.

Since being given the armband and signing his contract extension I think it is safe to say that he hasn’t been himself despite leading us to an FA Cup and Community Shield title in August last year.

Now we know he has had personal problems off the pitch which for sure would affect any normal person if they went through the same thing. And we know the pandemic has hit everyone in some shape or form both physically and mentally. The fact that these players have still managed to step out onto the pitch, without supporters and in a way that they are not used to one bit, says a lot about their character. But I believe the added pressure of being a captain of a club as big as Arsenal could be playing a role in his performances.

A number of people have called for him to be dropped altogether but that would not do him any good and would just add to the inconsistencies of his performances. He needs consistency and he needs that in playing, tactics and teammates around him, but the longer Arteta chops and changes the more he, like most of his teammates, will be affected.

So, the next question is could Granit Xhaka who has done a 360 from hero to zero, back to hero, be given the armband back?

Well, I don’t see why not. He seemed to be able to handle pressures of what the captaincy brought with it, although he made that mistake back in October 2019 where he trudged off the pitch and had a verbal fight with a small section of fans. And despite coming close to leaving the club, in came Arteta and transformed him into a rather solid player, both physically and mentally and now he plays a key role in the centre of our midfield.

Given that the armband doesn’t have a consistent keeper either at the moment I think the first step would be to re-analyse who is right for the role and keep it consistent, rather than having five or more players who have been assigned the role. Gooners?

Shenel Osman