Chelsea fans have noticed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang liking the Instagram post announcing the sacking of Graham Potter, as the £10m outcast appears to join loanee Dennis Zakaria in enjoying their manager’s exit.
Chelsea outcast Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has signaled his approval of Graham Potter’s departure by “liking” a post on Instagram announcing his sacking.
The forward, who has not appeared for Chelsea since late February and crashed out of the Champions League knockout stages, appeared to be enjoying the news on Sunday night.
Potter was sent off with Chelsea sitting 11th in the Premier League standings and Saturday’s 2-0 defeat at home to Aston Villa was the final straw for owner Todd Bohle and the club hierarchy.
Having repeatedly backed Potter after a poor run of results since the turn of the year, the further dent in their European qualification hopes proved too much.
Chelsea fans have noted, Aubameyang has ‘liked’ the post on the club’s official Instagram account announcing Potter’s exit.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang appeared to signal his approval of Graham Potter’s sacking by ‘liking’ Chelsea’s Instagram post announcing the news.
Potter has regularly left the striker out of his squad in recent weeks as Chelsea have struggled
Chelsea fans noticed that Aubameyang had “liked” the Instagram post on Sunday
This is perhaps not surprising given that the Gabon international, 33, hasn’t even been named in Chelsea’s squad for most of their recent Premier League matches.
He made his last appearance in a 2-0 defeat by Tottenham Hotspur on 26 February, although he was an unused substitute in a 1-0 home win over Leeds United the following week.
However, Aubameyang was not included in the matchday squad for the subsequent league matches against Leicester, Everton and Aston Villa.
He also did not appear against his former team, Borussia Dortmund, in the round of 16 of the Champions League, after he was excluded from the Chelsea squad to make room for January contracts.
Having only arrived at Stamford Bridge from Barcelona in a £10.3m transfer last summer, signed by his former Dortmund boss Thomas Tuchel, Aubameyang’s future at the club is already in serious doubt.
He was seen supporting his former club in the Clasico victory over Real Madrid last month, something that angered Chelsea.
Reports in Spanish newspaper AS have indicated that Chelsea will refuse to allow Aubameyang his coveted return to the Nou Camp in the summer.
Dennis Zacharias, another player who finds playing time limited under Potter, also “liked” the sacking function
Potter is on the touchline at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea slipped to defeat at Aston Villa
Aubameyang wasn’t alone in liking the Instagram post – quarterback Dennis Zakaria, another player who found opportunities limited under Potter, also gave his nod.
Recently ousted Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann is the front-runner to replace Potter with the German who had already looked through the middlemen even before Sunday’s news.
Bruno Saltour, who followed Potter from Brighton to Chelsea, will take charge of the team’s home game against Liverpool on Tuesday.
