Chelsea legend, Frank Lebouef, has expressed fear that Barcelona’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will fall victim to the Blues’ striker curse unless manager Thomas Tuchel changes tactics.
Chelsea are growing increasingly confident about signing Aubameyang, who appears set to leave Barcelona after little more than six months at Camp Nou.
Chelsea, meanwhile, are in the summer market for a new striker, having parted ways with Timo Werner and Romelu Lukaku earlier in the transfer window.
Werner and Lukaku are the latest in a long line of strikers who have failed to live up to their billings upon arriving at the West London club in big-money moves, with the likes of Andriy Shevchenko, Fernando Torres, and Alvaro Morata failing to make the expected impact in the past.
“I have some question marks, he is over 30, and the last two years have not been very good for him in terms of goals and consistency,” Aubameyang told ESPN FC.
“I have a lot of respect for his father, who was a former teammate I followed Pierre-Emerick’s career in Dortmund and then Arsenal. He is a fantastic player, but I want to see before judging.
“It depends on Tuchel’s decision and how he wants to play. If it’s like against Spurs with the rotation up front, we don’t know who plays in the middle or on the side, I don’t think it is going to work and it won’t be useful to have Aubameyang.
“If you play like you should’ve played with Lukaku, meaning with a real striker and serving him, it can be interesting.
“But we saw last season it did not happen with Lukaku, so why suddenly will Tuchel change the way he wants to play I don’t know. I don’t see that coming.
“I don’t know if Aubameyang will be stronger than the curse that hits all strikers that have played for Chelsea lately.
“I hope he’ll be successful, but I want to see before judging.”