Chelsea and Everton legend Pat Nevin believes Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s miserable form may serve as an odd inspiration to some of his Arsenal teammates.
Aubameyang was dropped from the Arsenal squad for their game against Southampton on Saturday for what manager Mikel Arteta described as a “disciplinary breach.”
The Gabon striker has suffered a serious dip in performance over the last 12 months; he has only managed four goals and one assist for the Gunners so far this season.
Nevin reckons Aubameyang’s slump has left the door wide open for others to fancy their chances at snapping up his place in the starting XI.
Speaking on Monday’s Football Show, Nevin noted the liveliness of some of Arsenal’s younger talents during their comprehensive victory over the Saints.
“What was quite noticeable about the game at the weekend was the young ones getting their games and their energy levels,” Nevin said.
“Ok, they’ll look at Aubameyang, and what he’s done before, and the goals he’s scored, and all that sort of stuff. But the professionals will think: ‘yeah, but I want his place; what he’s not doing for us, I’ll do for us.’’”
“It doesn’t matter who’s in front of you - you want to grab what they have, you want to take it off them.”
Nevin added: “For them, they could’ve thought: ‘that’s our mate.’ But if your mate is getting treated badly, and he’s not doing the right things - and you want to do the right things - oddly, you get a boost out of it.”
“As that game developed, 3-nil could have been 5 or 6-nil, and there looked a lot of energy about that group.”
Nevin: "Once you're dumped, you're rarely missed"
Nevin also argues that Arsenal fans are quickly losing patience with their one-time star forward.
“I think Arsenal fans want to see that level of effort from everyone. People have just gotten fed up with the guys who are not doing the work.”
“Some have got a good reason for it - you’re getting old and you need to manage it - but from him, you want more.”
“There are certain players - if you go back to Cantona, did you want to treat him exactly like everyone else?”
“Everybody knows there is a balance,” Nevin continued. “If you’re Diego Maradona, you think: ‘yeah, do what you like. Come and win the game for us, it’s fine.’
“As soon as you drop below that, you are dumped quicker than you can walk. The manager wants rid of them.”
“As soon as that happens to you, you are very rarely missed by those you leave behind.”
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