KEY POINTS

  • Barcelona remains interested in Arsenal's Aubameyang despite being in deep debt
  • Club president Joan Laporta slams previous administration for putting them in this situation
  • Aubameyang and Lacazette were absent in the season opener due to a "mysterious" illness

A new report has emerged out of Camp Nou and it seems that their eyes are firmly set on Arsenal team captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

The International Business Times reported yesterday that Barcelona has turned its gaze towards Arsenal as their search for a high-profile striker continues after the unfortunate departure of Lionel Messi to Paris Saint-Germain.

It was reported that the former Borussia Dortmund player and Alexandre Lacazette were both on Barcelona’s radar, but now it seems as if the club is prepared to make a move for Aubameyang only.

Sky Sports now reports that Barcelona is "more than willing" to offer former Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho in a swap deal with Arsenal for their team captain.

Barcelona team president Joan Laporta had a two-hour press conference yesterday, where he revealed to the public that the club is currently €1.35 billion ($1.88 billion) in debt and how he blames his predecessor Josep Bartomeu for the “terrible inheritance”.

Laporta also continued to slam Bartomeu and his board of directors for the financial trouble that allowed Messi to slip through their fingers.

"The first thing we had to do when we arrived was to ask for a loan of €80m because otherwise, we could not pay the salaries. The previous regime was full of lies,” said Laporta.

Laporta also revealed that thanks to Pique’s willingness to accept a wage cut, the team was able to sign Memphis Depay and Eric Garcia on free transfers.

He also hopes that other Barcelona veterans would do the same to confirm the arrival of Sergio Aguero.

As for the Aubameyang situation, Barcelona will need to give up Coutinho and possibly another player in order to make the financial side of the deal work.

Coutinho has flopped since his arrival at Camp Nou and offloading his contract for a player like Aubameyang will help right the ship, the club thinks.

Both Aubameyang and Lacazette were absent in Arsenal’s embarrassing season-opening loss to Brentford, with manager Mikel Arteta leaving no concrete clues as to why both players were missing in action.

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