Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang worked under Thomas Tuchel at Borussia Dortmund as the Arsenal striker – who was stripped of the captaincy this week – helped the Chelsea boss win his first major honour as a coach

Aubameyang’s future is up in the air after the demotion as he remains out of Mikel Arteta‘s squad for their Premier League clash against West Ham on Wednesday night.

Tuchel worked with Aubameyang at Borussia Dortmund, and the German said he will reach out to the striker but will not judge Arsenal over their decision.

Asked whether he will contact Aubameyang about losing the captaincy, he said: “I will [talk to him] at some point, but I don’t want to disturb. He was a very important player for me, we had a very close relationship. Today when we meet it’s still very nice, I can only say the best things about Auba as a player and person.

“I feel sorry for him that he’s in trouble because that’s not where he should be with his kind of quality and that is not the character that he has – I still believe in this.

“But I’m not involved in what’s going on at his club. I want to show my respect and not judge what is right or wrong.”

No Conor Gallagher regrets despite Chelsea injuries

Tuchel also says Chelsea can have no regrets over allowing Conor Gallagher to join Crystal Palace on loan despite their injury concerns in midfield.

Gallagher has shone for Palace and recently scored twice in Sunday’s 3-1 win over Everton to become their top goalscorer for the campaign with six so far in the Premier League.