There is an interesting bit of news from Darren Lewis in today’s Mirror saying that Arsenal had every intention of selling Olivier Giroud at the end of last season, but have now changed their minds.
The Mirror said: Arsenal have rejected a string of enquiries for Olivier Giroud .
A number of clubs made contact with the Gunners towards the end of last season over the 29-year-old France striker’s availability.
But, after initially suggesting they could be open to offers at the time, Arsenal have now insisted the Euro 2016 finalist is not for sale.
So could this be because the offer to meet Jamie Vardy’s buyout clause was rejected? There are not many Arsenal fans that would have complained if Vardy had been brought in as a straight replacement for Giroud, as long as Wenger still intended to buy one more top striker to cover for Danny Welbeck and as backup to Vardy.
A quick move like that at the beginning of the transfer window (and of course the arrival of Xhaka) would have gone some way to appeasing the Gooners that blamed our Premier League failure last season on the luckless Frenchman, especially as he went 15 games without scoring.
His great scoring run at the Euros would also have guaranteed that the Gunners would have got a reasonable price for Giroud, to add to the funds that Wenger already has earmarked for another striker. But it is now obvious that we will have to put up with Giroud in the squad for another season, but please let it be as backup to Lacazette or Lukaku!
Darren