Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: 2019/20 Performances

[field442]

He’s not overrated. He’s a very very good, clinical goal scorer. He has nothing else to his game though. He can’t hold the ball up and bring people into play and he’s not very good in general with the ball at his feet. If you play him on the left and he’s not scoring you’ll get nothing else out of him for 90 minutes. If Arteta doesn’t fancy him down the middle then he should be sold.

 

[bingobob]

It doesnt matter if Aubameyang is world class, very good or just good he is our most consistent goal scorer.

Xavis comments are a joke also. Messi has kept them competitive by himself. Theyve signed Fabregas who had Barcelona DNA, De Jong schooled in Cruff football, Griezmann an elite forward all have failed to some degree at Barcelona. Their brand of football rarely translates outside of their youth to senior players and even then a lot of players coming through still arent good enough. Hence their decline when they had 3 generational talents in Messi, Xavi and Inesta mature together.

Mane and Aubameyang are perfect partners to another type of player. The idea that all players need to be the same is strange. It's probably why I've preferred Real Madrids brand of football over Barcelona and Liverpools over City.


Anyway. On Aubameyang as ive said I can take or leave him. He brings us a lot of goals but leaves us imbalanced. So do we persist with the imbalance knowing he scores or do we build a better balanced team with him included. That's the question Arteta needs to answer himself. Either I'm happy with.

also. lots of strikers miss chances. Kane missed yesterday Salah takes 5 to score 1. Henry missed chances. It happens.

 

[Tom349]

My biggest issue with Aubameyang is his effort is inconsistent. One day he will be fighting hard and shutting down players and even competing in the air. The next he will still press but with no where near the same energy and fight. For a player who lacks any game outside of his insane ability to score by being in the right spot more often than not he needs to be more consistent with his effort to make up for his other short comings.

His best game for the club remains to be his hat trick against Valencia last season and two of those goals he got simply by wanting the ball more than his opponents. You watch yesterdays game and you can seriously question whether he really wanted to be out there.

In regard to his future. If he signs, he signs. If he doesn't we sell and get a more complete player. I think he is more or less at his level with the current Arsenal side and while we need the goals he provides the Arsenal I grew to love used to batter sides with players like Chamack leading the line. If we get better ballers in the team at the expense of Aubameyang we won't miss him as much as his current goal contributions relative to his team mates contribution suggest. Which is a far cry from when the likes of RvP, Cesc and Alexis left us.

 

[Trilly]

Get a hold of yourself. He was poor today but is the only player in our team that Liverpool/City would entertain and Arteta’s using him wrong.

I keep banging on about the fact that he’s a poor wideman. His game isn’t built on taking players on and delivering a final ball, it’s built on making runs off the shoulder of the last defender and finishing. Saka should’ve started on the left.

The fact that our midfield is so poor at progressive passing is the reason Arteta feels the need to play a striker who drops deep to get the ball and bring others into play.

Fix the root issue! It’s midfield. Play 433. Put Auba up front and play Saka/Pepe either side.

This is on Arteta.

Agree mate but doesn't your argument mean that he can't play 433 until we get better at progressive passing, which implies that we'll have to sign those players before we can play 433?

 

[Trilly]

Fans don't want to admit it, but Xavi is spot on in why Auba would never play for a big club like Barca: "Mané and Aubemayang can kill you in open space. But Barcelona need players who know how to move in small spaces." Fans want to pretend that Auba is some Henry/RVP level striker, just get the ball to him and he will score. But the truth is Auba doesn't possess enough quality and ability to rise above flat track bully level. This is why we need to start moving away from him and seriously consider selling him this summer, but then far too many people will not accept that.

We're a long way from that.

If we defend and create like a top 4 team then Auba will have us in a very respectable position. Lets focus on having an RVP type guy when we're actually in a competition that gives us the financial resources to even think of signing such a player and a defence that doesn't cost us a goal a game.

 

[bingobob]

Agree mate but doesn't your argument mean that he can't play 433 until we get better at progressive passing, which implies that we'll have to sign those players before we can play 433?

we could look at 352 and actually play Aubameyang and Lacazette as a 2 up top.

 

[African Flair]

we could look at 352 and actually play Aubameyang and Lacazette as a 2 up top.

We should ditch 3 cb formation asap. We don't have two competent centrebacks so why put three on the pitch?

 

[Riou]

We should ditch 3 cb formation asap. We don't have two competent centrebacks so why put three on the pitch?

Because we don't have a midfield or attack that can be trusted in a 4 at the back formation.

Everything is so ****ed with this current set of players, literally no matter what you do with them, there will be massive flaws in every set up and every combination of players...terrible, terrible squad building since summer 2015.

 

[African Flair]

Because we don't have a midfield or attack that can be trusted in a 4 at the back formation.

Everything is so ****ed with this current set of players, literally no matter what you do with them, there will be massive flaws in every set up and every combination of players...terrible, terrible squad building since summer 2015.

Yes I know no matter how this squad is set up it's going to be flawed. With 3 atb we have an extra bum on the pitch, still no creativity whatsoever and a dead attack.

We'll never go levels this way, we aren't Juve with Barzalgi, Bonucci and Chielini but it's worth a punt in the hunt I guess.

 

[Maybe]

We should ditch 3 cb formation asap. We don't have two competent centrebacks so why put three on the pitch?

Having 3 at the back does reduce the number of mistakes they do, none of them is good enough to be reliable if they are only 2.
Even if we move to two CB's we don't have that quality extra midfielder who would do the difference in the attack.
It sucks for Auba and Pepe because they are defending most of the game

 

[Hunta]

Seriously though, he’s got 20 league goals in the last two seasons. He’s probably the only thing keeping us in the top half.

 

[bingobob]

We should ditch 3 cb formation asap. We don't have two competent centrebacks so why put three on the pitch?

It's how we make the best of a bad situation.

The problem is weve a real lack of options to play a back 4 system. 2 centre backs that are error prone. Although if we move to it now the argument is we get the rest of the team set up for next season when hopefully Saliba comes in and plays as a part of a two and hopefully he is less error prone. It gives the team the time to learn the basics of what's required. Whereas if we insist on the 3 at the back we are learning them something theyll need to unlearn and with that build in potential mistakes I.e. I'm use to a 3 and player x is meant to be covering there resulting in an exposure when we switch to a 4.

I genuinely think a 352 would work well. It's actually annoying that weve lost the Ox as I think him and Saka would make excellent wing backs in that system. And then we just need a ball carrier in midfield.

This is probably more a squad analysis post anyway. The simple point on Aubameyang to me is a front two helps get the best out of him.

 

[lomekian]

Fans don't want to admit it, but Xavi is spot on in why Auba would never play for a big club like Barca: "Mané and Aubemayang can kill you in open space. But Barcelona need players who know how to move in small spaces." Fans want to pretend that Auba is some Henry/RVP level striker, just get the ball to him and he will score. But the truth is Auba doesn't possess enough quality and ability to rise above flat track bully level. This is why we need to start moving away from him and seriously consider selling him this summer, but then far too many people will not accept that.

Ultimately in the EPL you need both types. Open space killers and small space controllers.

Xavi's assessment is spot on, and Auba isn't Henry, but he's still an elite goalscorer because of his athleticism and movement. He's also an absolute killer through 1 on 1. But it all goes back to squad building. Auba can work for an elite club, but only if the club can play effective transition football and has at least one other attacking player who can beat people to make space AND has at least one midfielder who can consistently play passes that break lined and find channels. put KDB in our midfield and there's another 5-10 goals a season for Auba

 

[Penn_]

I understand that when he’s not scoring he does leave us unbalanced but let’s be real he’s Auba, not Walcott. Create the chances and he’s going to score.

The bigger issue for me is that it shifts Saka to the opposite flank and in turn so drops Pepe to the bench.

I do think we’re probably slightly up ourselves by not having him centrally. How many clubs outside the top four, or even top two, would have Auba in their squad and shift him wide?

 

[Trilly]

Everything is so ****ed with this current set of players, literally no matter what you do with them, there will be massive flaws in every set up and every combination of players...terrible, terrible squad building since summer 2015.

If I had to pick one post to sum up the squad it would be this.

We're a couple of singings away from being a possession team, or a counter attacking team, or a pressing team etc

We have a little bit of everything but are lacking one or two top players who just don't have weaknesses that need to be covered.

 

[African Flair]

Having 3 at the back does reduce the number of mistakes they do, none of them is good enough to be reliable if they are only 2.
Even if we move to two CB's we don't have that quality extra midfielder who would do the difference in the attack.
It sucks for Auba and Pepe because they are defending most of the game

I just don't agree with this philosophy. For me it's one more bad, error prone player closer to your own goal just as much as being more secure due to having more defenders.

 

[Tourbillion]

I'm annoyed at this BGB.

 

[gunner4lyfe]

Seriously though, he’s got 20 league goals in the last two seasons. He’s probably the only thing keeping us in the top half.

Probably?

 

[RunTheTrap]

I think Auba is our Van Nisterooy. He is clearly a talented striker but his overall play is like having 10 men on the pitch, especially when he's out on the wing. He can't dribble, cannot retain the ball well, poor hold up play etc. While RVN was a United legend, they never retained a PL with him. I'm being slightly facetious but the point I'm trying to make is that we may need a more complete footballer.

 

[Macho]

Disrespectful to both RvN and Auba tbh.
Great strikers.