He was expected like the Messi or almost this Friday evening at the Yaoundé sports stadium in Cameroon. But Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the Mayenne footballer, could not play with Gabon for the second day of Group C of the Africa Cup of Nations, despite a negative covid test.
At the end of the draw against Ghana (1-1), the coach of the Panthers explained the new absence of his star player. According to Pierre Neveu, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and his teammate Mario Lemina still had traces of Covid-19 before the match, based on the results of an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging). The two players had contracted the virus a few days before the start of the competition, in a nightclub in Dubai.
Friday evening, the rumor of heart problems for the former Stade Lavallois spread on social networks and in Cameroon. “_It is quite clear that Pierre-Emerick does not have a heart problem, neither does Mario, it is possible that the disease has left traces”, cleared Pierre Neveu, contradicting a tweet published in the evening by the Gabonese federation . “We are going to do MRIs again, but it was wise not to have them played, we followed the protocol (…) Two hours before the match, the selection doctor and the CAF doctor told me not to not play them. In order to protect the health of my players, I have taken responsibility“, explained the coach to Agence France Presse.
His father intervenes
Frustrated at not playing for the second time in a row, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang nevertheless pushed hard to appear in Gabon’s group against Ghana. It was his dad, Pierre Aubameyang, former defender of Stade Lavallois (1985-1991) and present with the Gabon selection who resonated with him. “Pierre-Emerick absolutely wanted to play, _he had come out of his room with his things, the doc told me no_, I asked his dad to intervene” detailed Neveu, who “hope” get his players back for the third match against Morocco.