Former Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere has said Arsenal have no option but to sell Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang this summer for a cheap fee.
Aubameyang is nearing the final year of his contract with the Gunners and isn’t keen to renew the deal, while he is also being chased by Chelsea, Barcelona and a number of top European clubs.
Meanwhile, Aliadiere has blamed the club for letting his contract get to this stage without a renewal. “They’ve got to sell him, 100 per cent,” the Frenchman told Goal.
“Arsenal can’t keep losing players on a free. To be honest, I still can’t believe we’ve again got a top player, our captain, going into the summer only having one year left on his contract. “For me, it has to be sorted when he gets to two years. Last summer he should have signed a deal or been sold. Because when you get down to one year left, in a player’s mind there is a difference.
“If I was Aubameyang and I knew I only had one year left, I would sacrifice one year of my career to go on a free and get paid a ridiculous amount of money and have all the clubs in the world chasing me. Who wouldn’t?” Aliadiere blamed Arsenal’s management, and believes that they could have sold Aubameyang last summer for up to £100m.
Aliadiere added: “That’s why I just think it’s wrong management yet again. It should be sorted at two years. You should not let a player end up with a year left on his contract, especially a player like Aubameyang. It’s not right. “I just think players are playing on it, they keep letting negotiations drag on and the next thing you know, he’s just got one year left.
“And now, how much are we going to sell him for with one year left? Arsenal are in the worst position you can imagine again because you’ve got a top quality player who assures you of 20-25 Premier League goals a season who is one year away from leaving on a free.
“Or, he gets sold to Barcelona or Real Madrid and for what? How much can you expect for him now? Nothing compared to what if you’d sold him last summer. They could have asked for £100 million ($121m).”