PIERRE-EMERICK AUBAMEYANG has opened up about his infamous clash with Mikel Arteta that ultimately led to his Arsenal exit.
Aubameyang left the Gunners in a shocking free transfer three years ago after being expelled from the first team squad.
He was initially dropped by Arteta at the start of December 2021 but later had his captaincy stripped.
It was revealed the striker had returned late from a trip to France whereby he visited his mum and flew her back to London.
That turned out to be the main catalyst for his winter exit from the club.
However, Aubamyang insists he will never apologise for making the journey to and from France despite the eventual outcome.
In a recent interview with The Athletic, he said: “My mistake. I should have come back the night before, but I arrived in the morning. I didn’t tell them that I would miss the flight because I was preoccupied with my mum’s stuff (medical examinations).
“I went directly to a team meeting. Everything was normal. After that, he (Arteta) said, ‘Come with me’. This is where he started shouting.
“He said I could not do this because I was the captain and it was not acceptable.
“He said I gave him a knife in his back; I don’t know why he said that. I was really p**sed off because it was not true and he knew why I flew.
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“He knew the reason and what was happening, he knew I was struggling that year. I was expecting help from him, not killing me like this.”
Aubameyang continued: “When I’m late, (and) it’s my fault — no problem. I always said sorry.
“But in this case, I’ll never say sorry. For taking my mum from Laval (his hometown in France) to London? No.
“Even if I came a day late, I would never say sorry. You understand or you don’t. If not, don’t give a day off or tell people they cannot fly.”
The striker had signed a three-year contract extension with Arsenal just one year prior to his fall-out with Arteta.
However, before putting pen to paper, Aubameyang wanted to LEAVE north London for pastures new.
He said: “I was talking on the bus with Alexandre Lacazette. Every fan was saying, ‘Sign da ting!’.
“Laca asked me, ‘What are you going to do?’ I was like, ‘To tell you the truth, I really don’t know’.
“If I’m being honest, at that time I wanted to go. For me, it was time to find a new challenge. I did my time. It was very nice, but I needed to change.
“It had been four years, I did great and maybe it was time to leave it like this, proper and clean, so people remember me as a good Arsenal player. I felt I needed to go because if I stayed, something would go wrong.”
Instead, he decided to extend his stay after being persuaded by Arteta.
But 16 months later he found himself outcast.
Despite his feud with Arteta, Aubameyang received a “great message” from the Arsenal boss when they parted ways.
He continued: “You cannot stay with that negativity,” before admitting he will “always love Arsenal” even though he spent a brief spell with rival club Chelsea during the 2022-23 season.
The Gabon international now plays for Al Qadsiah in the Saudi Pro League.
ETHAN NWANERI was the brightest spark on the pitch as Arsenal lost further ground int he title race.
SunSport’s Isabelle Barker has given her ratings for the Arsenal players…
DAVID RAYA – 6
The Spanish stopper didn’t have too much to deal with apart from Joao Pedro’s penalty which he went the wrong way for. He couldn’t have done too much about it though, it was a classy finish into the other corner.
THOMAS PARTEY – 6
Partey was ok to start with at right-back but the experiment still looked unconvincing in the second-half, with him struggling to handle Kaoru Mitoma when the Japanese international came on.
WILLIAM SALIBA – 6
The French centre-back was solid up until conceding the crucial penalty for dangerous play against Pedro in the box. If it had been a headbutt, Saliba would have been sent off, in fairness it looked as though he was going for the ball, and it was an unfortunate clash of heads.
GABRIEL MAGALHAES – 5
Started off solidly at the back but faded out with little answers for Brighton’s pressure towards the end.
RICCARDO CALAFIORI – 7
Calafiori was superb, particularly in the first half against Brighton, with the stats speaking for themselves. He won the most duels, completed the most take ons and most tackles. He also misplaced just one of his 22 passes.
JORGINHO – 6
The ex-Chelsea man struggled to receive the ball under pressure, nearly costing Arsenal a goal for the hosts. Generally looked too slow for the game this evening.
MIKEL MERINO – 7
The Spanish midfielder linked up beautifully with Rice for the opener, producing a lovely pass over the top for Nwaneri to latch onto. Merino faded out towards the end though, looking more sluggish and ponderous on the ball as the minutes went by.
DECLAN RICE – 7
The midfielder was the furthest forward, pressing the Brighton backline with Jesus and it worked at first.
He took on the Odegaard role when Arsenal didn’t have possession. Was involved with first big chance with Jesus and then pulled the strings for Nwaneri’s opener.
LEANDRO TROSSARD – 6
The Brighton faithful were booing Trossard from the get go but he didn’t show up to silence them. The Belgian winger offered very little going forward.
ETHAN NWANERI – 8
So good from Nwaneri for the opener. He was involved in the build up with Rice and Merino then put on the afterburners to produce a charging run before slotting the ball into the bottom corner.
What a good replacement Nwaneri has been for Bukayo Saka. He fits the bill with pace, body shape, and a lovely left foot.
GABRIEL JESUS – 5
The striker lashed a shot at Verbruggen for an early warning, but he was offside anyway, wasting the delicious through ball from Jorginho. Was virtually anonymous by the end and Arsenal won’t be able to win the league with a striker like that.
Substitutes
MARTIN ODEGAARD – 6
GABRIEL MARTINELLI – 6
