Former Chelsea star Craig Burley has indicated that Arsenal star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will likely consider other clubs over the Blues if he has a chance to compete for top honours.
Aubameyang will enter the final year of his Arsenal contract this summer, but is yet to agree on fresh terms with the north London club.
The Gunners want to keep the striker, but are likely to sell him if he does not pen a new deal in the coming months, in order to avoid the risk of losing him on a free transfer next year.
Chelsea have been linked with an interest in Aubameyang and Burley believes the Blues should absolutely sign the player if they have the opportunity to pull off the deal this summer.
However, he feels Aubameyang will favour a side who would compete for top honours next term, while his former club are still rebuilding under Frank Lampard.
Burley said on ESPN FC: “Absolutely I would go for it if I was Chelsea; it's whether the player wants to make that move and if indeed that’s on the table.
“The decision he's got to make is what do I have in terms of options.
“Chelsea are a project at the moment. Now if he believes that they are a project far enough down the line that they are going to compete with everything gets up and running again, then fine.
“But at his age, he's really going to be looking to go into somewhere where they are going to be fighting for the title now, they are going to be fighting for the Champions League now; that’s where he is in his career.
“He is good enough to be doing that, he has shown that at Dortmund, he has shown at Arsenal, an inferior team.
“He needs to make sure that he is making the right decision and I believe if he gets an offer from clubs that are further down the line than Chelsea, in terms of the progress, I think he will take that.
“But if Chelsea can get him, I think they should go for him, and if Arsenal lose him that is just another big body blow to Mikel Arteta.”
The 30-year-old has scored 61 goals in 97 appearances since joining Arsenal in January 2018, establishing himself as a key man at the Emirates Stadium.
