Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta sent a clear message to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang over his future at the club following yesterday’s FA Cup final win over Chelsea.
Aubameyang scored twice for the Gunners in a 2-1 win at Wembley, giving manager Arteta his first ever piece of silverware as a head coach after just seven months in the job.
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It was a hugely important moment for Arsenal following what has otherwise been a hugely disappointing season, with the team ending up with their lowest Premier League finish in 25 years.
Arsenal fans will now hope winning the FA Cup can inspire this group of players to do better next season, but it also shows Aubameyang’s importance amid doubts over his future at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gabon international is in the final year of his contract and it remains to be seen if this trophy victory will be enough to persuade him he can go on to win even bigger honours with his current employers.
Addressing this after the game, Arteta made it clear how important he feels the 31-year-old is to his plans, and also joked he’d like to give him more experience with lifting trophies after he dropped the cup during yesterday’s presentation.
“He needs more experience with trophies, we can get him used to that,” Arteta said after the game, as quoted by the Daily Mirror.
He added: “He knows what I think about him. I want to build the squad around him.
“I think he wants to stay and it is just about getting the deal done. But I think these moments will help him to realise and believe that we are in the right path and he is a big part of that.
“He is loved by everybody at the club. Hopefully he can continue with us. Will he extend? I think he will, yes.”