Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang may not be on his way to Barcelona, as was previously expected. The marooned Arsenal striker and former captain arrived in Spain earlier today to try and push through a loan move.
He has now not featured for the Gunners in almost two months, did not travel with the squad on their midseason break to Dubai, and is seemingly not set to be a part of Mikel Arteta's plans, either for the remainder of the season or beyond.
But with 18 months of his contract remaining and no internal solution ostensibly on the horizon, it leaves both Arsenal and Aubameyang in a rather tricky situation.
Surely, for both, it would be beneficial to go their separate ways? But where could Aubameyang actually go before the deadline shuts? Here are four clubs that the 32-year-old could still sign with.
Barcelona
It might not seem likely at this stage, but as avid followers of deadline days of years past will now, in the transfer window, things change very quickly.
It was reported earlier today that Aubameyang and Barcelona had come to an agreement to allow the striker to move on a six-month loan. However, David Ornstein has more recently said a transfer is off due to Aubameyang's inordinate wages and Barcelona's financial restrictions.
Add in the fact that Ousmane Dembele remains at the Catalan club after his proposed loan to Paris Saint-Germain collapsed yesterday and it is difficult to see how Barcelona can afford Aubameyang, without Aubameyang substantially dropping his wages or Arsenal contributing to them, which they are reportedly unwilling to do.
Nevertheless, you can never rule out moving to Barcelona, and whether the La Liga club is able to magic up added finances, Dembele finds a new home or Arsenal change their stance, there might still be legs in this deal yet.
Paris Saint-Germain
Ultimately, any team that signs Aubameyang will have to be capable of affording his wages. Even if Arsenal were to contribute a sizable portion, at £350,000 per week, even paying 50 per cent of his salary is a substantial outlay for most clubs.
As such, if Arsenal are shopping Aubameyang in the hope someone will bite, they may be able to cut out the middle man with Barcelona.
After Dembele's transfer to PSG fell through, the French club may be interested in another pacey, goalscoring forward who can play across the frontline.
Of course, PSG pulled out of the Dembele deal due to his wages, but Aubameyang does not have nearly the same injury record as the Frenchman and is a proven goalscorer throughout his career. If PSG want him, they will find a way to afford him, and given they were at least interested in the idea of Dembele, it's not inconceivable they could turn to Aubameyang as an alternative.
Fenerbache
Arsenal have previous when it comes to dumping highly paid superstar players who have fallen out with Arteta at Fenerbache.
While the Turkish side are not the first you might think of a possible landing spot for Aubameyang, they are intriguing for several reasons.
The first is that they have shown an ability to spend. While Mesut Ozil signed with Fenerbache on a new contract with different terms to his salary at Arsenal, his wages will not be cheap. For the right name, Fenerbache have invested heavily.
Secondly, Arsenal clearly have strong links with the Turkish team, having allowed Ozil to leave the club to sign with them on a free transfer.
And thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, the Turkish transfer window does not shut for another week - February 8 to be precise. If Aubameyang wakes up tomorrow distraught at still being an Arsenal player, he may push hard to move, anywhere, at which point, Fenerbache could well become an option.
Benfica
After Saudi club Al Nassr made an audacious loan bid for Aubameyang earlier this month, it became clear that Aubameyang wanted to remain in Europe.
Nearing the end of his prime, he was not ready to abandon playing at the top level in world football, even if it meant he could get out of Arsenal.
Signing for many of the teams in the knockout stages of the Champions League is unlikely at this late stage in the transfer window. However, Portuguese side Benfica have a unique advantage: their window shuts on Wednesday, February 2. The extra 48 hours could be the key difference between getting an Aubameyang deal over the line or not.
UEFA rules state: "UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League knockout hopefuls are allowed to register a maximum of three new eligible players during the winter." This would mean Aubameyang could feature for Benfica, if they wanted that extra boost in the last 16 against Ajax and potentially beyond.
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