Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang banned from national team following Gabon exit | OneFootball

Marseille will not have gone without Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for too long during the Africa Cup of Nations.

Last night in Marrakesh, Gabon fell to their third defeat in as many group stage matches as Ivory Coast staged a late comeback to claim top spot in Group F. The former Arsenal was not involved, having been released from the team’s camp due to a thigh issue after the second match, by which time their elimination had already been confirmed.

In the wake of that third defeat, the government of Gabon published a statement announcing the dismissal of the entire staff as well as the suspension of the national team as a whole. The two senior players, Aubameyang and defender Bruno Ecuele Manga (formerly of Lorient and Dijon, now at Paris 13 Atletico), have been banned from representing the national team.

Speaking after the second match, the country’s President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema expressed his worries regarding “a worrying erosion of patriotic spirit in the management of sports affairs”, while also pointing the finger at shortcomings in “persistent structural failings.” In today’s announcement of the the team’s suspension, the Sports Minister Simplice-Désiré Mamboula lamented the team’s “disgraceful” display in Morocco.

In their other two matches, Gabon lost to Cameroon (1-0) and then against Mozambique (3-2), the latter earning their first-ever win in the competition. Late last night, Aubameyang himself responded to his critics following the team’s exit in a post on Twitter: “I think the team’s problems go deeper than the minor person I am.”

GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin – reporting from Rabat