Lee Dixon says that staying on the bench for a few games might be good for underperforming Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
The Arsenal captain has been one of their worst players this season as he struggles to score goals for them.
Since he joined the club in 2018, this has been his most difficult spell in front of the goal and he will be hoping things get better for him when he starts playing for the club again.
He has been sidelined for Arsenal’s recent games with an injury, and in his absence, the Gunners arrested their slump to beat Chelsea 3-1.
The likes of Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe played important roles in that win, but Aubameyang will likely get back in the team when he is fully fit.
Dixon thinks that he might probably benefit from spending some time on the sidelines.
“Nobody is bigger than the club,” Dixon told Tuesday’s talkSPORT Breakfast. “And maybe Mikel Arteta might look at the game at the weekend and say, ‘we did create some chances, we did this’.
“It might just do him [Aubameyang] a bit of good to have a little step out of the team and just look from the sidelines.
“When you watch a game from the sidelines you can sometimes learn more than you do when you’re on the pitch.
“Your brain is so full of information when you’re playing; you don’t always see everything, you don’t always feel everything.
“Sometimes when you just step back and you sit on the bench for a bit and you look…
“He’s obviously a hugely talented footballer and we need his goals, but it might be a time for him just to look and assess the team.
“You can actually see little ways of improving your own game when you’re sitting on the bench, because you’re watching other people and you’re seeing gaps appear from a different angle.
“You go, ‘I can make that run next week’, or, ‘I know how the full-back does this’.
“When I was playing I didn’t analyse Ian Wright’s runs because they just happened.
“But if you were sitting on the sidelines and watched Thierry Henry or Wrighty or Dennis Bergkamp, you saw an awful lot more and it gives you a bigger and more colourful picture of that player.
“So it might do him a bit of good to step out.
“If they win their next two games and he doesn’t play then he [could] come back firing. That rest might do him good.”
I agree but Laca played almost full game three days ago so I reckon Auba or Eddie will start..
Well he managed to score before his injury, so might be good to get him back in the team on the back of this positive result to see if he can regain his form
why does Balagon not get any minutes in the league matches? he has shown desire and an eye for goal when he played in Europa league games. Much more so than Eddie.
I cried for Auba not to be given a new contract, I saw this coming. I hope the board will learn their lessons. I’ve seen lack of desire in his game since the new contract compared to the way he played before. I hope he changes or the club changes. If Ozil was frozen out, so should he be too, nobody is bigger than the club.
The problem is not wth auba, things are not well in the dressing and arteta has to find an attacking midfielder soon. Someone like graelish,erickson will do. Look at the denis beckamp and henry combination. This is the first tym i have seen arsenal playing without an attacking midfielder. Its not good for e strickers
I think auba needs to be on the bench so that he can be able to learn how to capitalise on the significant chances that his club do create.
Arsenal has been losing good players to other clubs for a very long time. Why dont arsenal buy graelish, erickson, someone who knows english football who can come and make an instant impact
This is not Auba not wanting to perform. This is rather Auba not being able to perform.
His style of play does not mash with MA’s new formation. The same goes for Willian and most of our senior players.
If MA insists on using his new formation than he needs to clear the deck and start anew.
So there is no magic here. The problem is with the coach and his system.