William Gallas has urged Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to focus on his football after being stripped of the Arsenal captaincy.
The forward’s long-term future at the club must surely be in doubt after Mikel Arteta took the decision to take the armband off of him after a disciplinary breach before Saturday’s Premier League win over Southampton.
Gallas, who himself was removed as club captain in 2008 after giving a candid interview in which he criticised some of his younger teammates, was speaking to Genting Casino about the Aubamayeng saga.
Reflecting on his own experience, Gallas said: “I didn’t accept it at the beginning, because it was not for the right reason. It’s difficult for me. That’s why it was difficult for me to accept it.”
When asked about where Aubamayeng - who is under contract until the summer of 2023 - goes from here, the 44-year-old said: “You have to say, ‘OK. The club and the coach, took that decision, and I have to find everything to refocus myself,’ and that is what I did.”
Mikel Arteta, meanwhile, has said that the club will not rush into any rash decisions when it comes to naming a replacement and will instead rely on a leadership group.
