Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has admitted that Thomas Tuchel was "frustrated and sad" when he was sacked as Chelsea boss but insisted the Blues players must adapt quickly to his successor Graham Potter.
Tuchel won the Champions League with Chelsea in May 2021, yet just 15 months later he was gone after a dire run of form inspired new Blues owner Todd Boehly to pull the trigger and dismiss the German from his post as manager. His final game as boss came in Europe in the form of a 1-0 defeat away at Dinamo Zagreb.
Aubameyang played an hour of that clash before being withdrawn given the former Barcelona man is still shy of full-match fitness. The striker enjoyed a good working relationship with Tuchel during their shared time at Borussia Dortmund, which is why both parties were so keen to reunite at Stamford Bridge.
After one training session and a 60-minute run out in Zagreb, that reunion was over. Aubameyang has since discussed Tuchel's departure with Hayters TV after the Blues' 1-1 home draw against RB Salzburg in what was Potter's first game in charge.
"Everyone knows the relationship that I had with Thomas. It's always sad when someone leaves the club. Obviously, I just saw him for a few days. When you play football you have to adapt very quickly to some moments in the season, this can happen."
Aubameyang was pressed for comment over whether he had communicated with Tuchel since he was sacked by the club, to which he revealed: "Not yet. I think he was a bit frustrated and sad, obviously, I will try to talk to him as soon as possible.
"It's been a crazy week for all of us, that's part of life, we have to adapt, I think it's a bit of sadness at the moment, hopefully, we'll get back to better days soon.
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"Obviously, I think it's a bit strange for everybody, not only for me, but as I said, this is football, you have to adapt, when you play for Chelsea you need results as soon as possible, that's why I'm a bit frustrated today."
Aubameyang has struggled in the two outings he has made for Chelsea since joining from Barcelona on deadline day of the summer window. The move marked a return to London just nine months after he left the Blues rivals Arsenal after falling out with Gunners boss Mikel Arteta.
The Gabon international has failed to last the full 90 minutes in either of the games against Dinamo Zagreb and Red Bull Salzburg respectively. Aubameyang will be hoping his luck changes under Potter, a manager he clearly rates highly.
"I think he's a person who's really positive, he's a great character so we will try to learn with him, to win as soon as possible," the striker explained. "I think his idea is very clear, so I think it's going to be easy. Obviously, it takes time to adapt to each other."
