Aubameyang recalls time at Milan and shares anecdote about Ronaldo and Ancelotti

By Oliver Fisher -

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has recalled his time at AC Milan as he gets ready to face his former club with Chelsea on Wednesday night.

Aubameyang actually began his senior career at Milan, but never appeared for the Rossoneri as he went on a series of loan spells in France and then joined Saint-Étienne permanently in 2011. After that he joined Borussia Dortmund in 2013, and ended up at Arsenal five years later.

The Gabon international joined Barcelona after his Arsenal contract was cancelled by mutual consent but he would return to London to join Chelsea at the end of the most recent summer transfer window, so he is getting ready to face his former club.

Interviewed by The Sun, Aubameyang spoke about his time at Milan and in particular why he found it quite difficult to break into the line-up, with his comments relayed by PianetaMilan and translated below.

“The team was very strong, to be honest. Ronaldo, Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Nesta… I was very young at the time. I was just trying to improve and watch Ronaldo to learn as much as possible… then he was a bit fatter! But he was still the best,” he said.

“I will always remember when Carlo Ancelotti scolded him for his physical shape and then Ronnie said to him: ‘What do you want me to do, run or score?’. Ancelotti replied: ‘Score’, and the next game Ronaldo scored twice! This is part of the character and as a striker you need it because you have to be mentally strong.”

Tags AC Milan pierre-emerick aubameyang
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