Barcelona made offer for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang before he signed Arsenal extension

Barcelona reportedly made a huge offer to sign Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang this summer before the striker signed a contract extension at the Emirates.

Arsenal confirmed Aubameyang had signed a new three-year deal to remain at the club on Tuesday.

The Gabonese previous deal was due to expire at the end of the season but first-team manager Mikel Arteta and technical director Edu played a pivotal role in convincing Aubameyang to sign a new contract at the club.

Aubameyang was reportedly considering his future with the North London club before Arteta arrived. He wasn’t sure about the direction the club was going at that time.

Aubameyang scored 22 goals in the Premier League last season and scored both goals in Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Chelsea in the FA Cup final.

He was also on the score sheet in his side’s opening-day 3-0 win over Fulham on Saturday.

“Signing for this special club was never in doubt,” Aubameyang said. “It’s thanks to our fans, my team-mates, my family and everybody at this club that I feel like I belong here.

“I believe in Arsenal. We can achieve big things together. We have something exciting here and I believe the best is to come for Arsenal.”

Aubameyang has become the joint-highest paid player at Arsenal after signing his new deal.
He will now take home a weekly wage of £350,000, same as Mesut Ozil who signed his current deal in January 2018.