Barcelona had proposed a loan move for the Arsenal star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. There have been several reports that Barcelona are close to completing a temporary deal for the striker. However, there might be some discussions regarding his salary.
Rumours were flooded that the Gabon striker had agreed a deal with the Catalan giants. There had been talk that Aubameyang can only sign if Ousmane Dembele leaves, but it seems that this is not the case and there is some room on the wage bill.
But there could be some problems with this move. The move is rumoured to be off as negotiations between the two clubs broke down.
Aubameyang was spotted in the city of Barcelona earlier today and there had been reports he would have a medical at the club on Monday afternoon. But new reports are suggesting that “the proposed loan deal has collapsed due to a disagreement over the planned salary coverage for the next six months.”
🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Barcelona / Arsenal talks for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang loan have broken down over salary. 32yo returning to London from what’s said to have been a family trip to Spanish city. Unless #FCBarcelona find major money it’s off @TheAthleticUK #AFC https://t.co/eRNFZ74LsC
— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) January 31, 2022
Aubameyang had reportedly been willing to take a pay cut to join the Catalan giants. He also seemed pretty keen on the move after falling out with Mikel Arteta at Arsenal.
However, it seems that Barcelona still couldn’t make the numbers work and the 32-year-old will not be arriving in Spain.
Some sources claimed that Ousmane Dembele was offered to Arsenal for a swap for Aubameyang, but he refused to move to Arsenal.
Dembele is another player who had a falling out with his club, and him not moving anywhere could bench him for the rest of the season. He has interests from Chelsea and Manchester United currently, but needs to think quick to move.
There was also interest from Juventus and Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal in signing Aubameyang on loan. However, a switch to play under head coach Xavi who was thought to be keen to bring the striker in was the preferred option.
He also travelled to the Africa Cup of Nations to play for Gabon but returned to England after contracting COVID-19.
Aubameyang, who is almost 32 now, has been out of the picture at Arsenal since manager Mikel Arteta left him out of his squad for a disciplinary breach over a family trip. Arteta had also removed his contention of captaincy and has not included him in his first-team squad since the game against Everton in December.
There is rumoured to be some major issues between Arsenal coach and Aubameyang which need to be resolved if he does not move anywhere else.
