Mikel Arteta’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang decision justified despite Arsenal failure

Arsenal’s failure to find the back of the net in Monday night’s 2-0 defeat away to Newcastle United has inevitably led to questions about whether Mikel Arteta was right to allow key forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to leave in February.

Monday night’s defeat could prove fatal for Arsenal ’s chances of qualifying for Champions League. They now must beat Everton on the final day of the season and hope Tottenham lose at Norwich if they are to pip their rivals

Aubameyang made his last Arsenal appearance in December and was allowed to join Barcelona following a disciplinary breach. Although Arsenal fans seemed content with Mikel Arteta’s decision to let the 32-year-old leave at the time, there are now questions about whether that was the right call, particularly due to how tight the race for the top four has been this season with small margins proving decisive.

Issues up top have been an ongoing problem for Arteta, highlighted by the fact the Gunners have failed to score in each of their last two matches. They’ve also scored the fewest number of goals for any side inside the top seven.

While Arsenal have too often looked toothless in attack, it’s been a different story for Aubameyang since his move. He’s bagged 11 league goals in just 16 appearances, making him Barcelona’s second-highest league scorer behind only Memphis Depay.

Despite the goals he scored in Spain, it’s still hard to create a compelling case that Arsenal should have kept the forward when we drill into some of the underlying numbers. In the Premier League this season, excluding a six-minute cameo against Everton, Aubameyang featured in 13 Arsenal matches but scored just four goals.

With him on the pitch, Arsenal as a team averaged 1.38 goals per