Watford striker Troy Deeney gave his take on the current form of Arsenal star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on talkSPORT (7:40am, October 26, 2020).
Aubameyang is arguably the best player on the books of Arsenal at the moment and is a proven goalscorer.
According to WhoScored, the 31-year-old striker scored 22 goals and provided three assists in the Premier League and scored three goals in the Europa League last season.
During the 2018/19 campaign, the Gabon international scored 22 goals and provided five assists in the league and scored eight goals with two assists in the Europa League.
However, the former Borussia Dortmund star is struggling for goals at the moment.
Aubameyang has scored one goal and provided one assist in six Premier League games and has found the net once in 29 minutes in the Europa League so far this season.
Watford striker Deeney does not think that the current form of Aubameyang, who signed a new three-year contract with Arsenal in September, is anything to worry about.
Deeney said: “Is it possible to say that he has taken a little bit more pressure on with the captaincy
“Trying to do more. Trying to get others involved. He is probably a bit more selfless in trying to help everybody else. I just think it comes down to the money. I think people starting hearing the money and signing this big contract then go ‘oh, he hasn’t scored in five weeks, he’s finished’. It’s like ‘relax’.
“Beforehand, he was scoring and everyone was like, ‘He has to sign and if we let him go then it’s a disaster’. But there aren’t many strikers who score every single week in the Premier League.
“I think with Aubameyang, he is very much, again looking in from the outside, that’s a very young Arsenal team coming through. They have a lot of ideas that Arteta is trying to put in. He has to a) get it himself or B) show all the other guys that this is how we do it.”
Staying calm
Aubameyang has shown that he is a top player, and a few bad games does not mean that he has gone off the boil.
The striker is the main goalscorer for the Gunners, and he will get back to banging in the goals for fun.
It is just a matter of time before the 31-year-old starts scoring regularly again. For the time being, Arsenal fans should stay calm and not worry too much.
Arsenal have lost their last two Premier League games, and manager Mikel Arteta will be determined to return to winning ways and get their quest to finish in the top four back on track.