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#2 Pierre-Emerick Aubamayeng (Arsenal)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was handed the captain's armband after it was taken off Granit Xhaka a little more than two years ago. Disciplinary action was taken against Xhaka in 2019 by Unai Emery after he reacted poorly to Arsenal fans as he was taken off during a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace.
Aubameyang returned late from a sanctioned holiday in early December 2021 and the club released a statement informing everyone of the action they were going to take.
"Following his latest disciplinary breach last week, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will no longer be our club captain, and will not be considered for selection for Wednesday's match against West Ham United.
"We expect all our players, particularly our captain, to work to the rules and standards we have all set and agreed. We are fully focused on tomorrow's match."
Reports have suggested that Aubameyang was relieved of his duties as captain due to a string of disciplinary problems. Back in March 2021, he arrived late for a team meeting on the day of a North London derby against Tottenham.
Prior to that, Aubameyang was culpable of going to get a tattoo by breaching the Covid-19 protocols.
#1 Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)
It's the talk of the town right now. It's one of those situations which cannot be spun positively no matter how you look at it. Romelu Lukaku joined Chelsea from Inter Milan this past summer for a club record €115 million. After getting off to a bright start, his form dipped and he was also sidelined with an injury.
The Belgian international was slowly reintegrated into the side as he returned from the sidelines and appeared to be getting back into form. But then a controversial interview with Sky Sports dropped and all hell broke loose.
Not only did Lukaku say he was not happy with the situation at Chelsea, he went on to suggest that Chelsea was his fifth-choice club.
"In my opinion, there are three absolute top teams in football - Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Every player dreams of playing for one of these teams one day. So I thought if I ever had that possibility, I would sign a new contract with Inter and then go there.
"But it didn't happen, so I told myself that there is only one team where I could possibly see myself - Chelsea. I wasn't thinking about going there, but at one point they came in for me and so I asked [Inter boss Simone] Inzaghi to leave."
That's just the tip of the iceberg. Lukaku jabbered on about his admiration for Inter Milan and his desire to return to Italy. Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel was predictably unhappy with the player's behaviour. Tuchel dropped him from the Chelsea squad that took on Liverpool in a crucial encounter this past weekend.
