Spanish media reported late on Monday that FC Barcelona will sign Gabonese international striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after his team, Arsenal, agreed to release him for free. The reports indicated that Aubameyang will sign a six-month contract with the Catalan club, seeking to compensate for the loss of their new Argentine striker Sergio Agüero, who retired due to heart issues, and the departure of fellow Argentine superstar Lionel Messi to Paris Saint-Germain. There is also an option to extend the contract for an additional year.
Barcelona was not required to announce the completion of the deal before midnight on Monday, which marked the end of the winter transfer window, as Aubameyang became a free agent from his contract with Arsenal. Aubameyang traveled to Barcelona, where his father has a home, to negotiate his transfer to the "Blaugrana." However, the deal faced obstacles due to the financial demands of the 32-year-old player, who missed his national team’s participation in the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon due to complications from a coronavirus infection.
Barcelona is grappling with enormous debts amounting to one billion euros, which led to Messi's departure to PSG. The Catalan club had hoped to offload French striker Ousmane Dembélé during this transfer window for a fee, but he has not found a club, which means he will leave as a free agent without a transfer fee. The transfer of Aubameyang was initially linked to Dembélé's departure, which temporarily stalled negotiations between the Gabonese striker and the Catalan club.
However, with Arsenal agreeing to let their former captain go for free, both parties returned to negotiations, and an announcement regarding the completion of the deal is expected in the coming hours according to reports. It is believed that Aubameyang agreed to reduce his salary from the £300,000 per week he was earning at Arsenal to facilitate his transfer to the team coached by Xavi Hernandez, who aims to lead the club to a Champions League qualifying spot next season. Currently, Barcelona sits in fifth place, one point behind the fourth and final Champions League qualifying position occupied by their Sunday opponent, Atletico Madrid, the defending champion.
Aubameyang has fallen out of favor with Arsenal and their coach Mikel Arteta, who stripped the Gabonese player of the captaincy and excluded him from the team since mid-December for disciplinary reasons. Aubameyang was appointed captain of Arsenal in 2019 and led the team to its only trophy under Arteta by scoring two goals in the semi-final and final of the FA Cup in 2020. However, his performance has declined since extending his contract for three years in September 2020, a move that made him one of the highest-paid players in the Premier League at £18 million (approximately $24 million) annually. Last season, he scored only 10 goals in the league as Arsenal finished eighth, and he has scored four goals in 14 matches this season. The Gabonese winger has represented the "Gunners" since January 2018, when he transferred from Borussia Dortmund in a then-record deal for the London club (£56 million).
