Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang Stripped Of Arsenal Captaincy

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been stripped of the Arsenal captaincy by Mikel Arteta, after missing the club's game against Southampton last weekend.



Aubameyang was left out of the squad on Saturday, as Arteta's side beat the Saints 3-0, with the manager explaining it was for 'disciplinary reasons.'

It wasn't the first time this year that similar has happened, with the striker also missing the north London derby last season for being late to the game.

Later on Saturday it was emerged the Gabon forward was late coming back to the club, following a trip abroad for a personal reason that had been allowed.

That has now led to Aubameyang losing the captaincy at the Emirates Stadium, with the club announcing the decision in a statement.

"Following his latest disciplinary breach last week, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will no longer be our club captain, and will not be considered for selection for Wednesday's match against West Ham United.

"We expect all our players, particularly our captain, to work to the rules and standards we have all set and agreed.

"We are fully focused on tomorrow’s match."

Aubameyang was given the captain's armband at the club in 2019, replacing Granit Xhaka, after the midfielder's short lived spell in the role.

The Switzerland player was given the role after a vote of the players, even though the fans weren't impressed, and he soon lost it after sarcastically waving and signalling at fans, who booed him after being substituted off during a game.

Auba has now had two disciplinary issues, leading to his removal in the role, which will lead to questions about who should be next.

The team had recently started turning their fortunes around and are starting to battle for a top four spot, although recent losses to Manchester United and Everton have slightly hit those hopes.

Beating Southampton has got them back on track a little but they must now face top four rivals West Ham without one of their best players, Alexandre Lacazette will likely be captain for now, having previously been vice captain.

At least we know next year's All or Nothing Arsenal documentary series from Amazon Prime Video will be fun.

Featured Image Credit: PA/Arsenal

Topics: Premier League, Arsenal, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

Ryan Sidle

Ryan is a journalist for SPORTbible with over eight years of experience. Passionate about all sports, he mainly covers football and F1 - Daniel Ricciardo once spent an entire interview referring to him as 'Ryan Gosling,' still his proudest moment.

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