Arsenal: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is down, but never out

Many Arsenal fans are worried about the current state of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but rest assured that while he is down, he is never out.

Arsenal have a potential golden boot winner in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but he’s in a bit of a rut now. Tottenham kicked it off, with his inability to secure three points for the Gunners, and Rennes was icing on the bummer cake.

There are certain players that, when they hit a slump, you better buckle in and get comfortable, because it’s going to be a while before we see the best of them again. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang isn’t like that, and he never has been, going back to his days at Dortmund.

But even isolating his time at Arsenal, he has had matches, like against Chelsea in week two, where he was atrocious in his finishing, and missed some clear-cut chances. In his next ten matches, he scored eight goals, was a fluent attacking force and was otherwise brilliant.

After the 1-1 draw with Liverpool, he was down a bit as well, but soon snapped into another ten match streak, scoring six goals and assisting two.

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Aubameyang can be a flustering player because of the simple fact that he requires service. He requires things to go right around him in order for him to be at his best. That can be a bad thing, if you’re looking for Alexandre Lacazette-esque individual inspiration, but if you want a player to “snap back” into form, then just play him in on goal or give him a poacher’s goal and he’s back in form.

I’ve actually be quite surprised by the negativity surrounding Aubameyang over the past two matches. After Tottenham, it wasn’t awful, but after Rennes it really was. People are acting like they all of a sudden forgot who he was and expected him to be someone else.

He’s a goal scorer, through and through. He’s a speed merchant. He requires a bit of support to be effective. That’s who he is and who he has always been. You can’t expect a player to be more than he is. It’s the same thing I’ve constantly had to say about Granit Xhaka. He is who he is. You either appreciate his specialized brilliance or you can walk around with your head up your disgruntled arse and be mad that he isn’t perfect. But that’s your call.

Just remember that a player can only be so many things. They can’t all be Messi’s and Ronaldo’s, and I can’t believe I even have to say that.