Arsenal complete £56m Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang signing from Borussia Dortmund in club-record deal
By Chris Cutmore | Daily Mail |
Arsenal have completed the club-record £56 million signing of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund.
Dortmund confirmed the news on their Twitter account on Wednesday, before Arsenal then shared a picture of Aubameyang posing in the club’s home kit, while screaming into the camera. He has become the best-paid player in the club’s history on a three-and-a-half-year contract worth £180,000 per week.
The 28-year-old striker is part of a transfer merry-go-round that will see Olivier Giroud leave the Gunners for Chelsea and Michy Batshuayi quit Stamford Bridge to replace Aubameyang at Dortmund.
But Aumbameyang brings with him a bad-boy reputation, having been the subject of several disciplinary proceedings by Dortmund.
The move for the explosive striker has been driven by Arsenal’s recently-appointed head of recruitment Sven Mislintat.
Aubameyang does not fit the usual profile of player the Gunners have tried to sign in recent years.
At 28, he is likely to have little resale value. Similarly, his sometimes criticised attitude represents a shift from the type of personality the club have targeted under Arsene Wenger.
Aubameyang was spotted leaving Dortmund Airport on Tuesday, gathering his belongings from a gold Range Rover before heading towards a back entrance.
The 28-year-old Gabon international then flew to Luton Airport on a private jet, accompanied by his father Pierre and his brothers Catilina and Willy, to finalise the move.
After touching down in England, he headed to Arsenal’s training ground and was spotted arriving at the London Colney base where he then had his medical.
Aubameyang withdrew on Monday from appearing as a witness at a court case of the man suspected of targeting Dortmund’s bus with three bombs last April.
Officially, Aubameyang is sick and cannot attend and Dortmund have given him permission to stay away.
In a complicated chain of sale, Dortmund insisted they will only sign off Aubameyang’s release once they had a replacement. They targeted Batshuayi on loan but Chelsea in turn would only agree to that if they could sign Giroud.
