Arteta Responds To Aubameyang Warning Ahead of Chelsea vs Arsenal Clash

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has reacted to Aubameyang’s warning ahead of Sunday’s London derby between the two Premier League giants, Chelsea and Arsenal.

Chelsea host Arsenal at Stamford Bridge this Sunday, and should Aubameyang get minutes against the Gunners, he will face the north London outfit for the first time since leaving the club earlier this year.

Aubameyang left Arsenal in February this year after he and the Gunners terminated his contract by mutual consent. It was a bitter end to his Arsenal career as he was stripped of the captaincy and had a fallout with Arteta.

He joined Barcelona on a free transfer in February 2022. However, after just seven months at the Catalan outfit, the Gabonese striker returned to the Premier League. Chelsea landed Aubameyang in the 2022 summer transfer window.

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Aubameyang ramped up the pre-match build before this weekend’s match on Sunday after he appeared in a BT Sport promo saying: “Arsenal, nothing personal. I’m back, I’m blue, I’m ready. Let’s go.”

But Mikel Arteta refused to place too much stock in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s warning to former club Arsenal ahead of their showdown with Chelsea on Sunday.

He spent only seven months in Spain after Barca was forced to cut their wage bill further and offloaded the former Gabon skipper to Chelsea on the final day of the summer transfer window.

Arteta was largely unfazed regarding Aubameyang’s comments – which may well have been pre-scripted anyway – ahead of the showdown in West London.

He told reporters: “You expect players to do that. “If you ask any of our players how they feel about where they are, they will say the same.”

The Arsenal head coach did not elaborate on the difficulties the club faced in the days leading up to Aubameyang’s departure, as the forward was forced to train on his own as a sanction following several disciplinary issues.

The 33-year-old has a modest return of three goals in 12 appearances across all competitions for the Blues this season, but Arteta is well aware of the threat posed by his former skipper.

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“We made decisions. We discussed things and we made a clear decision between all of us,” Arteta added.

“You know, if Auba’s got something it’s the ability to put the ball in the back of the net and he’s going to be doing that [until] the day that he decides he’s had enough of football.”

Arsenal definitely has the upper hand over their London rivals heading into Sunday, and currently sit top of the Premier League with 31 points – 10 clear of Chelsea in sixth.

Arteta’s men recorded a 5-0 hammering of Nottingham Forest last time out and have won 10 of their opening 12 league games. They also secured the top spot in their Europa League group and a straight passage through to the last 16 with a 1-0 win over Zurich on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Chelsea bounced back from a 4-1 humbling by Brighton & Hove Albion by beating Dinamo Zagreb 2-1 in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Fans who are you betting on …. Chelsea or Arsenal?