Arsenal are in negotiations with Borussia Dortmund to sign Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but the deal is far from done.
According to the Mirror, Arsenal’s move for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang could be in trouble as Dortmund have demanded a replacement for their star forward, specifically Olivier Giroud. Unless the demand is met, Dortmund are reportedly ready to delay Aubameyang’s transfer up until the summer and keep him at the club.
Aubameyang’s future has been a subject of speculation ever since the forward has demanded to leave Dortmund nearly a year ago. His dream has been to play for Real Madrid, but unfortunately, it looks that dream won’t be fulfilled anytime soon.
However, over the past few weeks, Aubameyang has been heavily linked with a move to Arsenal. According to recent reports, Arsenal’s new head of recruitment Sven Mislintant is currently in Germany discussing the details of the deal with Dortmund.
Arsenal have already made their first move with a 45 million bid as well as agreeing to personal terms with Aubameyang. But, the deal looks far from completion as Dortmund, in a new twist, has laid down a serious demand for a replacement. If this demand could not be met, Dortmund could walk away from the deal altogether and force Aubameyang to stay put until the summer.
Dortmund want Olivier Giroud as Aubameyang’s replacement and have demanded that Arsenal include the French International in any deal they propose. Arsene Wenger is keen on Aubameyang to join Arsenal, and would be open to the idea of sending Giroud the other way around, albeit on loan till the end of the season.
Giroud has been a regular for Arsenal in the cup competitions as well as the Europa League but has been lacking game time in the Premier League, after the purchase of fellow French forward Alexandre Lacazette from Lyon in the summer. Giroud had firm offers from clubs in the summer, especially from Everton, but decided to stay put and compete for a place at Arsenal.
A recent hamstring injury kept Giroud sidelined since December but he has recently returned to training and with the World Cup on the horizon, game time is imperative for the Frenchman. Arsenal, on the other hand, are in talks to sign a 30-goal striker in Aubameyang and Wenger’s trust in Lacazette and Welbeck could prove vital for Giroud’s future at the club.
Dortmund, haven’t been linked with any top draw striker to replace Aubameyang and Giroud would represent as the only viable option in such a frenzied transfer window. It was also reported earlier that Arsenal were open to offering cash plus Giroud for Aubameyang.
Arsenal are said to be confident on landing Aubameyang in the current window. Arsene Wenger has spoken about how the forward might be a good fit at the Emirates, which is quite uncharacteristic of the Arsenal manager, who usually refrains from talking about potential targets unless the deal is close to completion.
Now that the sale of Alexis Sanchez to Manchester United and Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s arrival at the Emirates has concluded, Arsene Wenger and his entourage will fully focus on signing Aubameyang before the window closes. A deal looks imminent, despite all the complications and Wenger will be hoping it goes over the line.