Antonio Cassano has slammed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for the comments he made about Mikel Arteta. In a leaked video which went viral over the weekend, the former Arsenal striker was heard to be criticising his former boss after he had completed his move to Barcelona.
Prior to Aubameyang's abrupt exit from the Emirates Stadium in January, the 33-year-old captained the north Londoners. But, after breaking disciplinary protocol amid a poor run of results, he fell out of favour under Arteta and was soon stripped of the armband.
Naturally, he sought an exit from London Colney in the January transfer window and joined the Spanish giants on a free. It was in this period when the video was taken of Aubameyang, slating the Gunners boss.
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In the video, the now-Chelsea striker was asked about his move to Barcelona and whether he was happier now that he had left Arsenal. He said: "I'm more than happy. Spain changed my life. The rest of the team at Barcelona are very cool, there is a lot of young players as well but they listen.
"I remember, they first called my father [his manager], they called him and we knew that the manager of Barcelona [Xavi] called me and said 'I didn't know there was an opportunity because you had those problems with Arsenal, if you come you will help us a lot'."
Aubameyang has since broken his silence on the video and has apologised for what he said, claiming that red mist had descended on him. But, former Italy international Cassano has jumped to Arteta's defence and slammed the striker for his comments.
Speaking on Bobo TV, as quoted by the Metro, he said: "Now Aubameyang is speaking as well. He dares to say that Arteta doesn’t know how to handle champions.
"Does Aubameyang consider himself a champion? But he doesn’t know how to trap the ball. When Arteta took Arsenal, in a general disaster, there were many players among that and he was there too. Try to play football instead of talking about Arteta, who is first in the most important league in the world. For me, it’s madness."
Arsenal and Aubameyang have, obviously, parted ways and both parties seem to be better off. The Gunners currently sit top of the Premier League, while the striker has guided Chelsea through an exciting run of form since Graham Potter's arrival.
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