Arsenal: Be careful with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang contract

Arsenal are reportedly working on a new deal for striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Given his age, they should be careful with how it is structured.

After a tremendous transfer window in which Arsenal added potential difference makers at a variety of positions, the Gunners’ focus now turns towards not adding talent but retaining what is already there. And that seemingly starts with their two brilliant centre-forwards.

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In the summer, it was tentatively reported that the club had reached a contract extension agreement with both Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette, but news has since fallen quiet since then, the reports perhaps hinting at the truth but a little premature to accurately delineate what is actually going on.

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However, this week, there was a new report in The Daily Telegraph that claimed Arsenal are preparing a unique contract offer for top goalscorer Aubameyang, which would bring the striker to within the same earning ballpark as Mesut Ozil, the present highest earner in the squad. According to Matt Law, Raul Sanllehi is keen to extend Aubameyang’s two-year deal and include some form of Champions League-related bonus that would take his salary close to the £350,000-a-week that Ozil is currently paid.

The report states that Arsenal cannot afford to shell out a fixed contract in the region of Ozil’s wage, especially after adding the salaries of Nicolas Pepe, David Luiz and Kieran Tierney to the wage bill and the impending new deal for Lacazette likely to bump his salary up too, but there is confidence from both sides that a deal can be completed swiftly.

A new contract seems sensible. Aubameyang was the club’s top goalscorer last season, was the co-Golden Boot winner in the Premier League last season, has already notched twice this year after looking razor sharp in the pre-season, and been outscored by only Mohamed Salah since his debut in February 2018. He has been crucial to the team ever since his arrival.

However, Arsenal should be careful in the type of deal that they offer. As they experienced with Ozil, agreeing to a bumper new contract for what is viewed as a star player is not always advisable. Aubameyang is a very different character to Ozil and seems far more committed to the club irrespective of what he is paid, but the doubts remain nonetheless.

Moreover, at 30, how long can he be expected to perform at the highest level? Perhaps he can emulate Cristiano Ronaldo and be a world-class striker for four or five more years. Or maybe, as he loses pace, which is his crucial asset, his efficacy will diminish before then. The Gunners do not want to be left with a waning, 32-year-old striker earning north of £300,000-a-week.

I am not saying that Aubameyang should not be offered a new deal. His performances obviously indicate that he should. However, the structure of that deal must be extremely precise. If this is managed poorly, it could come back to bite, just like Ozil did.