Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has issued a response after a video emerged which showed former club captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang criticising the Spaniard.
Aubameyang enjoyed a spell as skipper under Arteta, only to have been stripped of the captaincy in December 2021 and offloaded to Barcelona shortly thereafter. The striker has since left Camp Nou to return to the Premier League with Chelsea, but a video filmed over the summer saw him take aim at the current Arsenal boss.
"To manage big characters or big players, [Arteta] can’t deal with it," Aubameyang told A Jewellers when still on Barcelona's books. "He needs some young players, they don’t say anything, they listen."
The 33-year-old has himself responded to the footage, but Arteta was also asked about it ahead of Arsenal's Europa League group stage game against Bodo/Glimt. And, rather than addressing the comments in too much detail, he attempted to use the moment to highlight the positives around his current squad.
"People are free to discuss what they want," Arteta said when quizzed on the matter. He was also asked about the atmosphere in the dressing room and couldn't have been much more complimentary.
"Phenomenal, I've never been in a better dressing room," he said. "More enjoyable, more hard-working, better relationship with the staff to players and it's an absolute pleasure as a coach to be part of this group."
Aubameyang rediscovered his goalscoring form at Barcelona in the second half of last season, helping Xavi's club finish second in La Liga. However, after the Catalan club added Robert Lewandowski to their ranks, he was allowed to leave for Chelsea on transfer deadline day.
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"Aware there is a video out that was recorded just after I arrived at Barca," Aubameyang said of the clip in which he criticises Arteta. "At the time I still had a lot of bad feelings in me - Arsenal are doing great things this season and I wish all my old guys well, just not on November 6."
Sunday, November 6 is when Chelsea are due to face Arsenal at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League. Last season's meetings both went the way of the away teams, with Chelsea winning at the Emirates Stadium and Arteta's team claiming a 4-2 victory in west London.
Since joining Chelsea, Aubameyang has already made an impact in front of goal despite the Blues changing manager shortly after his arrival. The 33-year-old scored his third goal in as many games on Wednesday, helping secure a victory against another of his former sides, AC Milan, which helped move Graham Potter's Blues one step closer to the Champions League knockout stages.
