Former Borussia Dortmund coach Peter Bosz has revealed that they almost sold Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to a Chinese club last summer, before the striker eventually moved to Arsenal in January.

Bosz took charge of Dortmund in June 2017, and tells Ruhr Nachrichten that he was immediately told that Aubameyang was on the way out.

The first day I came to the office with [Michael] Zorc and [Hans-Joachim] Watzke,” Bosz said. “They said, ‘This is the squad, the team we want to stick together. You should not talk about a player: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. He will switch to a Chinese club for 78 million euros.”

The 54-year-old didn’t name the Chinese club in question, but it’s believed to be Tianjin Quanjian Football Club. In the end, the move broke down, and Bosz didn’t explain exactly why. It’s a good thing for Arsenal that it did though, because they then managed to sign the striker in the following January.

By that point, Bosz had already left the club. He only lasted until December, before Dortmund replaced him with Peter Stoger.

Aubameyang went on to score 10 goals and assist four in his first 14 appearances for Arsenal, one goal contribution per game on average. It was a fantastic start, and part of what’s giving fans hope ahead of the coming season.

It’s just a shame the striker couldn’t take part in the Europa League, which was actually partly Bosz’s fault. The manager couldn’t lead his team to a single win in the Champions League group stages, which is why they dropped down into the second-tier European competition, leaving Aubameyang cup-tied.

Let’s hope for an even more positive campaign for the goalscorer in 2018/19.