Alan Smith has stated that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the ‘shadow’ of the player he once was, as he told Off the Ball.
The former striker stated that, despite how far Aubameyang has fallen, he would still start the Arsenal captain in the number nine role.
Mikel Arteta subbed the man with the armband on Thursday night when the Gunners suffered a defeat at Old Trafford.
But given Aubameyang’s lacklustre display, he might find himself dropped to the bench for Monday night’s trip to Merseyside.
Even though Aubameyang is once again out-of-sorts up front, Smith shared why he would still stick with the experienced forward.
“I would be inclined to stick with Aubameyang,” said Smith. “I know, at the moment, he is a shadow of the player he once was.
“But he does give the side a focal point. He is someone that can still threaten in-behind and stretch teams.
“He missed that sitter against Newcastle and then (on Thursday), he might have been offside, but it was still a miss.”
There is big pressure on Aubameyang’s shoulders because if his and Arsenal’s form continues to drop then a lot of heat will be headed his way.
There’s something about wearing that Arsenal captain’s armband that is causing the player in question all sorts of issues.
Granit Xhaka went through a number of issues when he was leading the team out and it’s not exactly going plain sailing for Aubameyang now.
On one hand, it’s a good thing, from the perspective of Arsenal, that they are playing a struggling Everton side that haven’t won in eight games.
But, on the other hand, if they lose to Rafa Benitez’s side, then it’s going to look a lot worse for the North London club.
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