The world of football has seen several African strikers come and go. Not all of them have been greatly successful, but there are a few front-men that stand out amongst the rest. Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto’o, Nwankwo Kanu are some of the greats that come to mind. Of the current crop, Pierre- Emerick Aubameyang can be considered as the best African striker of this generation.
Time and again, the Gabonese frontman has proved to be one of the best strikers in Europe. Having started his career at Milan, he moved to Saint- Etienne and that’s where it really began for Pierre. In total, he scored 41 goals in 96 appearances stretched out over 3 summers. Such form saw him being snapped up by Borussia Dortmund in 2013.
At Dortmund, he has been a goal-getter par excellence. The service he gets at Dortmund is unparalleled and he has benefitted hugely from playing alongside excellent players like Marco Reus and previously Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Robert Lewandowski. All in all, his goal-scoring record is quite exceptional at the Signal Iduna Park.
This season too, he has been in spectacular form and leads the Bundesliga scoring charts. In all, he has 19 goals in 18 appearances in all competitions. It’s the kind of form that makes him hot property and there will be several clubs hot on the heels of Dortmund to part with his services. He has hinted that it could be his last season at Dortmund as he wishes to test himself at a club that is at a higher level.
There will surely be plenty of buyers if Aubameyang is made available in the shop market, but it looks highly unlikely that Dortmund will let go of their man unless their price is met. General rumours and widespread indications will make fingers point at the Bernabeu Stadium as his next stop, as Real Madrid are considered to be one of his many suitors. With their financial power, they are sure to be favourites to sign him up.
Here are 3 Premier League clubs that could benefit hugely from getting his services –
Liverpool
Currently managed by his former manager at Dortmund, Klopp, Aubameyang would surely fancy a move to Anfield. Klopp already knows how to get the best out the Gabonese man and this will surely be a telling factor if he makes the move to Liverpool. The Anfield side are also missing an out-and-out striker at the moment and Pierre definitely fits that billing to perfection. Standing at 6 ft ½ inch, he also has the aerial prowess to be a real success in the Premier League.
Playing alongside Phillipe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino and fellow African-attacker Sadio Mane could bring out the best from Pierre and we could see him unlock levels of himself that the world hasn’t quite seen yet.
Manchester City
The Blue half of Manchester are currently managed by former Bundesliga coach Pep Guardiola. The Citizens are hugely dependent on Sergio Aguero for his goals and signing a player of Pierre’s talents could make them invincible and one of the strongest attacking forces in the league. Pep would’ve certainly kept an eye on Pierre and his developments. It was mooted that he could have brought him in during the summer, but the move never materialised due to Dortmund’s reluctance to even budge on discussing a deal.
A move to City could certainly be appealing for him as they are one of the Premier clubs in the world right now. They have the financial backing and also the desire to win big at the club. All factors that could tip Pierre in favour of a move to Manchester City. He is certain to be a success at City, as he will receive world-class service from the likes of David Silva, Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling.
Arsenal
The Gunners are perennially linked with moves for hot-shot strikers with big personalities, but they never really show the intent in terms of making big bids that are required to price away star strikers from their respective clubs. That situation could change when they set their eyes on Pierre though.
Wenger is clearly an admirer as Pierre is not only strong, but also has an incredible pace to burn. His movement would certainly add an extra dimension to Arsenal’s attack, which is being lead by Chilean Alexis Sanchez at the moment. They also have the likes of Mesut Ozil, Santi Cazorla, Granit Xhaka, Chamberlain to name a few. All players that Pierre would certainly get along well with.