Arsenal Vs Manchester United: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang can make statement

Arsenal travel to Manchester United on Sunday afternoon for the last time under Arsene Wenger. Before the new regime begins, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has the perfect chance to make quite the statement.

Arsenal travel to Manchester United on Sunday afternoon. Even though either team has little to play for, especially after Liverpool dropped points against Stoke City on Saturday meaning that United’s second place is relatively secure, this is still set to be quite the occasion, if not for the usual reasons.

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Obviously, this is Arsene Wenger’s last trip to his great adversaries. That certainly adds significance to the fixture. But more than just the nostalgic, era-ending achievement, there is also the tip to the future.

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Both Arsenal and United will be hoping to challenge for the top four, and more, next season and beyond — that may not necessarily be deemed likely, but that does not negate that that is their aim nonetheless. With this game coming in the final few weeks of this campaign, both teams have the perfect chance to lay down a marker ahead of the coming transfer window and new campaign.

And it is not just on a collective level either. There are many individual storylines that are extremely intriguing. Can Alex Iwobi impress enough ahead of a new manager’s arrival? Will Paul Pogba deliver in a big game or will the weight of his price tag again labour? Can a rotated Arsenal team match the might of United proving their depth as preparations begin for the new season?

But there might not be a player for who this game is more significant than one Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

The Gabon international has enjoyed a highly prosperous start to his life in north London. Six goals in the Premier League, a game-changing performance from off the bench last weekend, and a showing of true elite quality that certainly excites the fans for what is to come. But if there has been one slight on his first few months in England, it has been his performances against the big teams.

Aubameyang has played three times against the other ‘top six’ teams in the Premier League — a north London derby against Spurs; two back-to-back ties against Manchester City, one in the Carabao Cup final and one in the league. Arsenal collectively have not scored in any of those games, games that Auabameyang has played 90 minutes in each.

He was largely anonymous in all of them, failing to manoeuvre himself into space and struggling to make the most of limited service because of the suffocating press of the opposition. It was not necessarily his fault that he and his teammates were so far off the pace in these games, but there was a pattern to his play: On the peripheries of play; unable to heavily influence it in the Gunners’ favour.

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Against United, then, Aubameyang has the perfect chance to make an emphatic statement ahead of next season. He can prove that his ability to inspire in these big games, prove that he can lead Arsenal when it matters most, and prove that is capable of spearheading the attack ahead of the new season. Aubameyang has the chance to make a statement. Let’s hope that he takes it.