Aubameyang admits he joined Arsenal with idea of Wenger staying ‘for years’

Aubameyang admits he joined Arsenal with idea of Wenger staying ‘for years’

Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had admitted that he thought Arsene Wenger would remains at the club ‘for years’ when he joined them in January.

The Gabon international made the switch to The Emirates earlier in the year, completing a £56 million switch from Borussia Dortmund.


And the striker has continued his fine form from Germany since moving to Arsenal, scoring 10 times in only 14 appearances since his club record move.

He scored Arsenal’s only goal in Wenger’s last ever game in charge of the club yesterday afternoon – the Frenchman bowing out from North London with a hard fought 1-0 victory over Huddersfield Town.

Wenger announced his retirement from the club last month – an announcement that shocked fans everywhere, as well as Aubameyang who believed he would find himself under the Frenchman’s guidance for the forseeable future after joining the club.

“I thought he would be at Arsenal for years,” Aubameyang told Standard Sport. “But this is life. This is football. Sometimes you never know. But I was happy to play for him. I learned a lot in not a lot of time to work with him. I am happy to be here.

“Yesterday was important for us because it was the last game for the boss. It was important to win this game for him. It was special.”

Arsenal will now work to find a replacement for the long serving Wenger, with Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri and former Dortmund boss – who worked with Aubameyang in Germany – Thomas Tuchel amongst the favourites.

Regardless of who is in charge come August however, Aubameyang says he aims to continue his fine form with the Gunners, and hopes to help guide them to big success in the seasons to come.

“At the beginning, it was really hard because physically I was not ready,” he said. “I did not play in January, all month, so it was not easy.

“But after big work with the staff, I found my form again. I scored some goals and thanks to my team-mates, of course, because we work for that.

“These last few weeks we played well and we have a lot of young players. It is good for the future and I am sure next season will be a good season.”