Ligue 1: Aubameyang joins Marseille from Chelsea

Chelsea have confirmed the departure of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who has signed for Ligue 1 side Marseille permanently.

Both Chelsea and Marseille did not reveal the amount paid for Aubameyang.

This is the second time the 34-year-old Gabon international will be leaving the Premier League in 18 months, having spent four years at Arsenal from 2018 before joining Barca in January 2022.

Aubameyang scored one goal in 15 Premier League appearances for the Blues last season and was left out of the squad for the Champions League knock-out stages by then-manager Graham Potter in February.

He scored only three goals in his time at the club and they all came in October. His first Chelsea goal came against Crystal Palace in the Premier League, before back-to-back Champions League strikes against AC Milan.

It’s been alleged that Chelsea owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital were happy to hand Aubameyang a free transfer to get his wages off their outgoings.

The Premier League giants will be relieved to make greater strides into boosting their position with FFP, the onus now on finding a buyer for Romelu Lukaku.

As many as 12 of last season’s senior squad have now left Chelsea, and others will follow with Hakim Ziyech also out of Pochettino’s plans despite a move to Al-Nassr falling through.

Croatia midfielder Mateo Kovacic has signed for Manchester City, Kai Havertz has joined Arsenal, and Mason Mount has moved to Manchester United, while goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and defender Kalidou Koulibaly have made the switch to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli.

N’Golo Kante has also moved to Saudi Arabia, joining Al-Ittihad, while midfielders Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Christian Pulisic have joined AC Milan and former captain Cesar Azpilicueta is now an Atletico Madrid player.

Aubameyang has previous experience in Ligue 1 having played for St Etienne for two years from 2011 and 2013 as well as loan spells with Dijon, Lille, and Monaco.