The former England striker explains why he feels the Gabon star is having a poor season with the Gunners in North London
Gabriel Agbonlahor believes the performance of Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang dropped down a gear after he signed a new contract last summer.
The 32-year-old Gabon international has not enjoyed a good start with the Gunners this campaign, only managing five goals in all competitions – two in the Premier League against Norwich City and Tottenham Hotspur, and three against West Bromwich Albion in the Carabao Cup.
“You can’t just keep someone on the pitch if they aren’t performing,” Agbonlahor said as quoted by HITC. “It’s different with Cristiano [Ronaldo] because he is one of the greatest ever players.
“But Aubameyang was poor. He wasn’t holding the ball up. It didn’t look like he had that pace to get in behind that Brighton defence and it was the right call to bring him off.
“When you are looking for a new contract, there is no lie; your performances are going to go up. Once the contract is signed, naturally you are going to take it down a gear; at least, that’s what you can see in Aubameyang’s performances since he has signed that contract”.
Agbonlahor’s sentiments come just a day after Arsenal legend Ian Wright also picked Aubameyang and Thomas Partey of Ghana as some of the players in the team’s starting XI who failed to sparkle at the Amex Stadium.
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