Arsenal sign Aubameyang from Dortmund in a club record £56m deal

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored 21 goals in 24 games in all competitions for Dortmund this season

Arsenal have signed Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund in a club record £56m deal.

The Gunners had two bids for the 28-year-old rejected by Dortmund before agreeing a fee that eclipses the £46.5m July purchase of Alexandre Lacazette.

Dortmund agreed to complete the deal after striking a deal to sign Chelsea forward Michy Batshuayi on loan.

Arsenal said the 2015 African Footballer of the Year had joined on "a long-term contract".

Aubameyang scored 141 goals in 213 games for Dortmund since 2013, including 21 in 24 matches this season.

But he was suspended by the German club for their match against Wolfsburg on 14 January for missing a team meeting.

The forward was also left out of the squad for their next game game at Hertha Berlin because club officials felt he was not focused enough, but he played 90 minutes in Sunday's 2-2 draw with Freiburg.

Aubameyang joined Dortmund from French club Saint-Etienne in 2013.

During his stay with the Bundesliga club the only major trophy he won was the German Cup in 2017.

He was named Bundesliga player of the year in 2016, and last season was the German top flight's most prolific scorer with 31 goals.

He has played 56 times for Gabon, scoring 23 goals.

Aubameyang's impressive stats

• He averaged 116 minutes per goal in his time in the Bundesliga, a rate only Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski bettered in the same period (107 mins per goal)
• He contributed to 172 goals in 213 matches in all competitions for Dortmund, averaging a goal or assist every 96 minutes
• He scored 66 goals more than any other Dortmund player since his debut in July 2013

  Aubameyang club-by-club league goals
  Club	Games	Goals
  Lille (2009-10)	14	2
  Monaco (2010-11)	19	2
  Saint-Etienne (2011-13)	87	37
  Borussia Dortmund (2013-18)	144	98

  'Criminally overlooked' - analysis

  German football expert Raphael Honigstein on BBC Radio 5 live's Euro Leagues Football Show
  Aubameyang is somebody who will definitely add goals for Arsenal but I don't know if individually he will lift the team to another level. He's not that kind of player.
  He definitely brings pace, finishing and movement. I think he's been criminally overlooked by some of the bigger clubs who might have wanted a more orthodox number nine.
  He will add quality up front, there's no doubt about that, but I think it will be hard to play him alongside Lacazette as they are very similar in terms of position and movement.
  Arsenal have lost Alexis Sanchez and his energy when he is on it, his pressing. I think you can sometimes underrate or not value enough the importance of somebody pressing from the front line. It's very contagious and acts as a trigger.
  Aubameyang doesn't really do it. What Arsenal gain in terms of quality and pace, they might lose in terms of aggression.
• Source:http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/42859716