Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has defended himself after being suspended by Borussia Dortmund, telling reporters he does not “understand” his latest punishment.
A club statement on Twitter read: “Aubameyang has been removed from the squad for tomorrow’s match for disciplinary reasons.”
However, reports have it that the striker has been repeatedly late for training, with the latest offence coming when he arrived 20 minutes late for final preparations ahead of the trip to Stuttgart.
Aubameyang was previously suspended by the club last November when he missed the 1-0 win over Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League for an unapproved trip to Milan against then-coach Thomas Tuchel’s wishes.
Reports have alleged that Aubameyang took a similar trip this year to Barcelona with club permission, but he returned late on Sunday.
However, Aubameyang said: “After Milan, I could understand the suspension and fine because I broke a club rule. But I don’t understand it this time — I didn’t want to turn up late.”
According to reports, Aubameyang had thought 2:30 p.m. was the departure time for the trip to Stuttgart when it was actually 2 p.m. They also reported that various teammates had already complained to coach Peter Bosz about his poor timekeeping, which is believed to have further incurred Aubameyang’s wrath.
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