Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has signed a new three-year deal with the club, ending a months-long wait for fans who have been pushing to have him commit his future to the Gunners.
Upon signing the contract, the Gabonese forward said he feels he belongs at the club for which he has made 111 appearances and scored 72 goals since arriving from Borussia Dortmund in January 2018.
“Signing for this special club was never in doubt,” Arsenal.com quotes the 31-year-old. “It’s thanks to our fans, my team-mates, my family and everybody at this club that I feel like I belong here. I believe in Arsenal. We can achieve big things together. We have something exciting here and I believe the best is to come for Arsenal.”
Aubameyang was handed the Arsenal captaincy in November 2019 after Granit Xhaka was stripped of the responsibility for an angry confrontation with fans following a 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace in October.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta hailed the Gabonese forward’s commitment to the club, noting that he is an important part of the squad.
“It was important for Pierre-Emerick to stay with us,” said Arteta. He’s a superb player with an incredible mentality. Being the player to have taken the least amount of time to reach 50 goals with this club tells you everything you need to know about him and his way of working.”
“He’s an important leader for the team and a big part of what we’re building. He wants to be up there with the best players in the world and leave his mark. He can achieve that here,” he added.
