Aubameyang confirms Gabon retirement after row, says he was humiliated and will end it here | OneFootball

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, aged 37, has ruled out playing for Gabon again, ending his second stint with the national team after their early exit at the last Africa Cup of Nations.

According to Superdeporte, the Deportivo de La Coruña forward said he was humiliated and his image was tarnished despite playing injured at the tournament, calling it the final straw and preferring to stop now.

The fallout stems from events after the 2025 finals in Morocco, won by Senegal. Gabon lost all three group games, against Cameroon, Mozambique and Ivory Coast, and were eliminated. The Gabonese government dissolved the coaching staff, temporarily suspended the team and excluded Aubameyang and Bruno Ecuele Manga.

He featured against Mozambique and scored, then returned to Deportivo to treat a thigh injury, and was later omitted by the authorities. He had already criticised the punishment in January, saying the national side’s problems ran deeper than him.

It is not the first time he has stepped away. In May 2022, while at Barcelona, he retired from internationals, then reversed that decision a year later after speaking with then president Ali Bongo Ondimba.

Aubameyang leaves as Gabon’s record scorer, 40 goals in 86 caps. At club level he has started brightly at Deportivo, scoring in his first three LaLiga matches, the latest securing victory over Valencia at Riazor.

Source: Superdeporte

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