Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has returned to international football in obedience to the plea of the president of Gabon Ali Bongo Ondimba.
The Chelsea striker who is 33-years-old retired as Gabon’s record scorer, netting 28 goals in 68 appearances, in May 2022.
The former Arsenal and Barcelona striker said the return was prompted by a meeting with his country’s president Ali Bongo Ondimba.
Aubameyang took to his Instagram page to write: “(I) listened to the wise words he said to me as a father talking to his son.”
Gabon national team coached by Patrice Neveu are currently topping their 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification group.
Gabon will seal their place in the tournament should they win Democratic Republic of the Congo. The game will be played on their home ground in June 2023.
Aubameyang also added via his post that: “A few days ago, I had the immense honour to be received by the President of the Republic (of Gabon) Ali Bongo Ondimba.”
“Following this, I therefore put myself at the disposal of my country and of the coach Patrice Neveu.”
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang made his debut for Gabon national team in 2009 and has endured a number of difficult club campaigns in recent seasons.
And with Chelsea this season, he has also struggled and he did fall out of the pecking order for both former coach Graham Potter and current coach Frank Lampard.
Barcelona confirmed that the Gabon International will get a La Liga winners medal from their title win this season even though he only played 8 minutes before he moved to Chelsea.
Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger brought Aubameyang to the Premier League from Dortmund in 2018 and he went on to score 92 goals in 142 starts for the Gunners.
Since he returned to the Premier League for Chelsea, Aubameyang has only scored one in the league for The Blues.
He was subsequently dropped for the Champions League knock-out stages for Chelsea despite scoring his first club AC Milan home and away in the group stage.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Pierre-Emerick Emiliano François Aubameyang ONM is a footballer who was born on 18 June 1989 and plays as a striker for Chelsea.
Aubameyang is known for his lightening pace, finishing, and off-ball movement.
He was born in France, and formally a Gabonese international, and holds the record for the country’s all-time top goalscorer.
Professional Career
Pierre-Emerick is the son of Pierre Aubameyang and he began his senior club career playing for Italian club AC Milan, but never appeared for the club as he went on a series of loan spells in France.
He subsequently moved to Saint-Étienne in 2011 where he won a Coupe de la Ligue title before moving to Borussia Dortmund in 2013.
Aubameyang was a king in Germany as he finished as the league’s top goalscorer in the 2016–17 season and won a DFB-Pokal.
Aubameyang is also Borussia Dortmund’s seventh highest all-time goalscorer.
Aubameyang was the subject of a then-club record association football transfer when he signed for Arsenal in a transfer worth £56 million (€60 million) in 2018.
This feat thus made the striker the most expensive Gabonese player of all time.
The Gabonese won an FA Cup and finished as the league’s joint-top goalscorer in the 2018–19 season with Arsenal.
The former Arsenal player returned to the Premier League after he signed for Chelsea F.C. at the end of the summer transfer window.
The striker still remains the record Gabon’s all-time top goalscorer after making his debut for his country at the international stage in 2009.
He was named African Footballer of the Year; the first Gabonese and second European-born player to win the award in 2016.
