Chelsea reportedly remain determined to offload Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to a club in Saudi Arabia this summer.
After leaving Arsenal in acrimonious circumstances last year - being stripped of the captaincy for multiple disciplinary breaches - the Gabonese attacker reignited his career at Barcelona with 13 goals in 24 games.
In a bid to rectify his previous mistakes in England, Aubameyang touched back down in London to join Chelsea on a two-year deal, reuniting with former Borussia Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel.
However, Tuchel was relieved of his duties only a few weeks after Aubameyang's arrival, and the 34-year-old flattered to deceive during his debut campaign with just three goals in 21 matches.
Aubameyang was memorably left out of the Blues' Champions League squad for the knockout stages under Graham Potter, and the return of Frank Lampard did little to improve his fortunes.
© Reuters
The ex-Dortmund man started just one Premier League match from February onwards - playing the first half of a 3-1 loss to former club Arsenal - and he missed the Blues' final five league games of the season through injury.
With Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson bolstering Mauricio Pochettino's frontline, Aubameyang - who is due to become a free agent in 2024 - seemingly has no future at Stamford Bridge and is expected to head for the exit door in the near future.
The striker has made no secret of his yearning to return to Barcelona, but the Catalonian giants are not thought to be considering adding to their attacking ranks following last year's capture of Robert Lewandowski.
Instead, a lucrative move to the Middle East has been mooted for Aubameyang, although French giants Marseille could offer the 34-year-old the chance to remain in Europe and compete in the Champions League.
Aubameyang was previously said to be stalling over a departure from Chelsea and was reluctant to head for the Saudi Pro League, but journalist Fabrizio Romano claims that Chelsea are insisting on shipping him out to the Gulf state.
© Reuters
Romano adds that Aubameyang's extortionate salary is the main roadblock for European clubs to overcome, but negotiations with Saudi teams are only at their early stages.
New Al-Ettifaq head coach Steven Gerrard is understood to have earmarked Aubameyang as a top attacking target, and the Gabon international would be available for a modest fee, having only cost Chelsea €12m (£10.3m) last year.
Chelsea have managed to successfully offload three ageing players to Saudi Arabia already this summer, cutting Kalidou Koulibaly (Al-Hilal), Edouard Mendy (Al-Ahli) and N'Golo Kante (Al-Ittihad) from their ranks.
Hakim Ziyech was tipped to follow the trio to the Saudi Pro League with Al-Nassr, but the Moroccan attacker's move collapsed, allegedly due to a failed medical.
Kai Havertz, Mateo Kovacic, Mason Mount, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Cesar Azpilicueta, Christian Pulisic and Baba Rahman have also become victims of the Blues' summer cull, while striker David Datro Fofana will spend the 2023-24 season on loan with Union Berlin.
