Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s international career appears to have ended quietly as he returned to France on Tuesday, missing Gabon’s final match in the Africa Cup of Nations.
After losing their first two
matches in Group F to Cameroon and Mozambique, Gabon has been eliminated with one match remaining against reigning champions Ivory Coast in Marrakech on Wednesday.
At 36, it was anticipated that the game against Ivory Coast would mark the end of his 16-year international career. However, he will miss the final group game to rejoin his club, Olympique de Marseille.
A thigh injury on the eve of the tournament in Morocco cast doubt on his participation. Nevertheless, he entered the match against Cameroon after 30 minutes in Gabon’s opening game on Christmas Eve and played the full match against Mozambique on Sunday, scoring in the 3-2 defeat.
“Following the established medical protocol between Marseille and Gabon medical staff regarding Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, clinical examinations were conducted daily,” stated the Gabon football federation on Tuesday.
“The most recent examination confirmed the discomfort he experienced in his left thigh the day after the Gabon-Mozambique match. Given the disappointing results, which cut short Gabon’s participation, the medical staff, in consultation with his club, agreed to protect the player’s physical well-being by exempting him from the final, inconsequential match.”
Aubameyang has long been Gabon’s talisman, choosing to play for the team his father had captained, despite having represented France at the junior level.
He debuted for Gabon in 2009, scoring against Morocco in a World Cup qualifier, and went on to earn 82 caps and score 39 goals.
Aubameyang helped Gabon reach the Cup of Nations quarter-finals when they hosted the tournament in 2012 but was the only player to miss his penalty in a post-match shootout loss to Mali.
The tournament in Morocco marked Aubameyang’s sixth Cup of Nations finals appearance. He was named African Footballer of the Year in 2015.
Earlier this year, he helped Gabon finish as one of the four best runners-up in the World Cup qualifiers, scoring four goals in the game against Gambia in October. However, Gabon lost in last month’s Africa playoffs, ending their hopes of qualifying for a first-ever World Cup finals appearance in North America next June.
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