Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has responded to Arsenal fans on Instagram after the harsh treatment he received on his return to the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night.
Arsenal got back to winning ways, after four Premier League games without victory, to further ensure misery on their London rivals, Chelsea who have lost every league game under Frank Lampard so far since his return.
Aubameyang started in one of a number of changes made by Lampard ahead of the match. However the former Arsenal man couldn’t impose himself on the game and he was substituted at half-time with Chelsea 3-0 going into the break.
The Gabonese striker managed nine touches in the 45 minutes he was on the pitch, with four of them being from kick-off.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang said via instagram that “sometimes people forget” about his off-field issues after being subjected to boos on his return to Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium.
The Gabonese striker spent four years with the Gunners, including a spell as captain. He left under a cloud, though, with manager Mikel Arteta stripping him of the armband before sanctioning a departure to Barcelona.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang at Arsenal. [Image Credit: Getty Images]
Arsenal fans weren’t happy their former captain made the switch to Chelsea at the beginning of the season, reason why the 33-year-old was booed in the manner he was on his return to North London.
“Honestly feel so bad for him,” one Twitter user wrote of Aubameyang. “Always positive, almost lost his mother, caught malaria, toxic end at Arsenal, went to Barca and got his house robbed, now gone to Chelsea and not playing at all, was made fun of at Stamford Bridge by our players and now booed by fans that he loved.”
The message was shared on Instagram by a fan with the caption “no matter what I’ll always love you auba”.
The former Arsenal captain replied: “You know sometimes people forget what’s the real life and forget about how you can’t control what’s gonna happened.”
Before the game, Mikel Arteta had urged Arsenal supporters to remember the good times, including an FA Cup win and a Europa League final. However the Arsenal fans made their feelings clear from the first whistle & it wasn’t supportive.
Mikel Arteta before the game: “Let’s say thank you, pay respect and gratitude for what he was. He was an incredible player for us, scored a lot of goals, he was our captain, and he deserves that.”
