Aubameyang Outscoring Solanke: The Striker Spurs Nearly Signed

Tottenham Hotspur’s struggles this season, currently sitting in the bottom half of the Premier League table, can be partially attributed to injuries plaguing their squad. Despite these challenges, Spurs have managed to maintain a potent attack, scoring 48 league goals – a tally only surpassed by Arsenal and Liverpool.

Leading the charge for Tottenham this season is Brennan Johnson with 12 goals and 3 assists in 32 appearances. Close behind is £65m signing Dominic Solanke, who has notched 11 goals and 6 assists in 33 games. Son Heung-min rounds out the top three with 10 goals and 8 assists.

However, there’s a former Premier League star currently outscoring Solanke – one who Tottenham nearly signed over a decade ago. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, now 35 and playing for Al-Qadsiah in Saudi Arabia, has scored 12 goals in just 20 games this season.

In 2012, Aubameyang was shown around Tottenham’s facilities but was never contacted afterwards. According to former Spurs player Ronny Rosenthal, then-manager André Villas-Boas decided not to pursue the striker.

Since that missed opportunity, Aubameyang has gone on to have a stellar career, including:

• 141 goals in 213 games for Borussia Dortmund
• 92 goals in 163 games for Arsenal, winning a Premier League Golden Boot and FA Cup
• 13 goals in 24 games for Barcelona
• 30 goals in 51 games for Marseille

While Tottenham won’t be losing sleep over not signing Aubameyang, especially given Harry Kane’s subsequent emergence, it’s interesting to consider what might have been. The “unreal” goal machine, as dubbed by journalist Jonas Adnan Giæver, continues to prove his scoring prowess even in the twilight of his career.