Borussia Dortmund has issued an ultimatum for clubs interested in signing its prized striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The 28-year-old has been linked with numerous clubs throughout the transfer window but according to Dortmund CEO Watzke, the club hasn’t received any offers for the player and will not wait for long.
While speaking to Germany Sunday paper Welt am Sonntag, Watzke revealed, “We have not had any offers, we will wait a few more days but not long anymore.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”We have told Aubameyang, ‘if you want to move and have a club ready to meet our conditions, come to us and we will talk about it’. But we also explained that this is only possible within a certain window of time. We must find a replacement, which is difficult, if not impossible.[/perfectpullquote]
“Personally, I would prefer he stay with us, but there are a few clubs on this planet where he can obviously earn more.”
Aubameyang was phenomenon last season scoring 31 league goals to edge out Robert Lewandowski for the Golden Boot despite missing a month playing in the African Cup of nations. He also scored an impressive seven goals in nine Champions league matches making him one of the best strikers in the world.
Chelsea and AC Milan are currently favorites to sign the forward after he turned down a record-breaking salary from Tianjin Quanjian, and are expected to part with around €70 million for his signature.
Dortmund has consistently said that Aubameyang would be allowed to leave if their €70 million (£61.6m) asking price is met, but now insist that the deal must be completed well in advance of the new season to give them time to find a replacement.
While Aubameyang’s future remains uncertain, Dortmund is optimistic about Mario Gotze, who made his first appearance since February in Saturday’s 3-2 win against Urawa Reds.
The World Cup winner recently recovered from a metabolic disorder that kept him out for five months and Watzke says he is ready to play an important role next season.
Featured Photo: Getty Images
