Chelsea's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang 'rejects move to Saudi Pro League'

Following a brief but successful spell at Barcelona, Aubameyang touched back down in the UK last summer to reunite with Thomas Tuchel at Stamford Bridge.

The 34-year-old penned a two-year deal with the Blues, but only a few weeks after his arrival, Tuchel was sacked following a poor run of results.

Aubameyang subsequently failed to leave his mark under Graham Potter or Frank Lampard, and he was notably left out of their squad for the Champions League knockout stages by the former.

Having played just 110 minutes in the Premier League since the start of February, Aubameyang will likely be on the move again this summer and has attracted interest from the Middle East.

However, the Daily Mail claims that Aubameyang is not keen on the idea of a switch to Saudi Arabia this summer and is pushing to leave on his own terms rather than Chelsea's.

The Blues are said to have received an offer of £6m from an unnamed Saudi Arabian team, and they are pushing for the Gabon international to accept given that they are unlikely to receive a higher fee from clubs in Europe.

Aubameyang is refusing to be forced out of the club, though, potentially placing Chelsea in a tricky situation regarding his future if no other offers for his signature are tabled.

During his difficult first season back in England, the former Arsenal man scored just three goals and provided one assist in 21 games for Chelsea, starting just five matches in the Premier League.

In between his two spells in London, Aubameyang netted 13 times in 24 games for Barcelona, and the 34-year-old has confessed that he is pining for a return to Camp Nou.

However, La Blaugrana are not believed to share Aubameyang's desire for a reunion in the wake of Robert Lewandowski's impressive debut season, and they have no plans to shell out on a new striker at this moment in time.

While Aubameyang is hesitant to leave Europe, a few of his teammates are expected to link up with Saudi Pro League teams in the coming weeks following confirmation of N'Golo Kante's move to Al-Ittihad.

Hakim Ziyech is set to join Al-Nassr, while Kalidou Koulibaly is on the cusp of agreeing a move to Al-Hilal, and goalkeeper Edouard Mendy has given the green light to a switch to Al-Ahli.

Fellow misfiring striker Romelu Lukaku is also thought to be wanted by teams in the Gulf state, but the Belgian is keen to continue in Europe, preferably with Inter Milan on a permanent deal.

Lukaku's future is currently in limbo, but Chelsea are close to offloading one unwanted forward after accepting a £65m bid from Arsenal for Kai Havertz, who is set to undergo his Gunners medical this weekend.