Aubameyang excluded from Dortmund squad due to 'internal' matter

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Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is a shock exclusion from Borussia Dortmund’s Champions League group visit from Sporting Lisbon on Wednesday due to an “internal” ruling made by manager Thomas Tuchel, reports Raphael Honigstein.

Dortmund chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke confirmed it’s “the coach’s decision” to suspend the striker.

Speculation of a disciplinary matter was then fuelled by an Instagram post submitted by Aubameyang’s brother, Catilina, appearing to show the siblings socialising just moments before the vital continental clash:

But he was pictured in the stands of the Westfalenstadion in the tie’s early stages by Archie Rhind-Tutt of BT Sport, suggesting that this was a matter that wasn’t just dealt with shortly before kick-off:

Aubameyang, 27, has grown into one of the most ferocious hitmen in Europe since moving to Dortmund from Saint-Etienne in 2013, and his absence from the midweek tilt compounds the selection issues that Tuchel already had. Marco Reus and Shinji Kagawa were already unavailable for the match, while Raphael Guerreiro had only just returned to contention in last Saturday’s Bundesliga bout with FC Schalke 04.

His omission also comes after a summer of transfer tattle reporting he could’ve been on his way to Real Madrid, Manchester City, or Paris Saint-Germain. This latest twist in the tale will only heighten those rumours.

Dortmund started quickly to try to ensure Aubameyang wasn’t missed against Sporting Lisbon, with Adrian Ramos opening the scoring after just 12 minutes.