Mikel Arteta has backed captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang by telling critics to remember what the striker has done for the club. However, he has also noted that the striker is not immune to being dropped.
Auba has been great in front of goal for the club but he gas struggled so far this season. He has only netted four goals in 13 appearances.
He signed an improved deal few months ago and that has brought extra criticism from some quarters. He was even switched from left to lead the line, and that has failed to improve things.
He will not feature in the game against Dundalk as he was left out. However, Arteta was asked if he has considered dropping the striker.
He replied: “No one is undroppable. At the end of the day, we have to find the right players to win football matches.
“But we cannot forget what Auba has done for this club and what he has done in recent months, not years ago.
“As well, I see how he’s training and how he’s behaving, how much he wants to turn this situation around. When I see that type of hunger, it’s about supporting the player as well as the status he has in the team because of the performances he has provided for this football club.”
The manager was asked what he is doing to keep his captain positive, he added:
“Listen, today and this week, the response that I’ve seen from the players and the reaction I saw from the players after the match [against Spuds], I cannot be any prouder. Because I know how difficult it is for everybody at the moment.
“After losing a derby you can be completely down and I saw a completely different team, a team that wants to fight, that has a big belief in what they are trying to do and they want to push themselves and push each other harder and harder.
“Auba was one of the main guys there and today he was walking around the place with an energy that wouldn’t be associated to a team or a player that is suffering at the moment and that is for me the way we have to approach it.”
