Giroud doesn’t deserve the hate – but Arsenal still need a striker

How much do Arsenal really need a new striker?

Ever since the signing of Granit Xhaka was confirmed last week by the club, Arsenal fans have been wondering where, when and who our next newcomer may be. After completing his journey to find a midfielder, Wenger will surely now be on the look out to improve the other key areas that need addressing in the team.

One of these areas is the desperate need for a top quality striker, which we all know Wenger has not had much luck in finding for at least the past 4-5 years. Before Giroud, we had Van Persie leading the line who despite his injuries, did have a few fantastic seasons with the Gunners before his move away from the club. Before RVP, we had Adebayor up top, who may have spent the past few years on an endless spiral, but on his day he was a striker that defences would be scared of coming up against. If you then go back far enough you reach the days of the King, Thierry Henry and so on and so on, showing that Wenger has had a few very good strikers in his management of the club. This is not to compare them against one another, but that Giroud comes nowhere near the skill and ability of any of those players in their prime.

Firstly it must be said that I don’t think Giroud deserves all the hate he gets. Giroud on average does score 20 goals a season for the Gunners, which isn’t exactly a bad figure. The issue is his consistency and that he doesn’t get enough goals in the Premier League to drive us towards the title. We saw Giroud start the season brightly, working up a good partnership with teammate Mesut Ozil. However the Frenchman faded and experienced a barren run of games without a goal over the second half of the season, before finally finding form again in the last few games against Man City and Aston Villa.

Quite simply put, Giroud is good enough for Arsenal, as he does certainly have the ability to impact the game. This is because As mentioned, 20 goals on average is a not a bad score come the end of the season, the problem is that he is not good enough to be the club’s main striker! Many think Giroud is nothing more than a pretty face that should be binned by the club. I don’t think the Frenchman should leave Arsenal, he just needs more competition and more of a bench role. If Giroud isn’t happy with that or isn’t willing to fight for his place then by all means he can choose to leave. However I don’t think Arsenal should be looking to get rid of him completely because he does offer us something other strikers don’t.

Giroud is a fantastic header of the ball and can hold the ball up well to create chances for his other teammates. What he can’t do is sprint towards goal with pace, frighten defenders and try to beat a man. That isn’t in Giroud’s natural ability to do so, which is why it would be good to have two strikers at the club, who can offer the team something different, rather than be stuck with Giroud’s one style of play.

I did think Danny Welbeck was the answer, as he does have the pace and ability to beat a man with the ball at his feet. However his injures of course are a concern and so I think Wenger still has to look elsewhere. Lukaku for me is a firm favourite if Wenger can somehow come to agreement with Everton, but if not there are a fair few strikers already out there that could be what the club is looking for.

BY AH

Tags Giroud Ozil

19 Comments

  1. Giroud is a good player but far too specific and predictable for the style Arsenal play in, Looking at the hate he received from France was that Arsenal fans did it because he did not turn up for us for more than 10 matches but when i watch Giroud play for France he gets a goal in almost every game and last major fixture he scored against Germany. Benzema is great striker who scores a lot of goals but it is not Giroud’s fault he hasn’t been chosen. France has abundance of options which is where they can compensate for Giroud’s lack of mobility. Arsenal don’t have that luxury but will need a dangerous winger or hitman from Netherlands or Spain.

    1. NO PLAYER deserves hate.
      In Giroud’s case, I really don’t blame him. He’s not the best striker Arsenal can afford. However, Wenger plays him week in week out, therefore incurring the wrath of some fans. If we had a worldie, no one would complain about Giroud’s quality.
      Giroud is good for his standard…not Arsenal 1st team quality though.

  2. The fact of the matter is that a striker who goes 15 straight league games without scoring a single goal deserves all the hate he receives,Giroud is not of the quality needed to lead the line in a team with title aspirations and it’s not just Arsenal fans who boo him even French fans can see he sucks!

    1. Kane had a lean spell at the beginning of the season, i think it was only one goal in the first fourteen matches. I do not think he received any hate. Perhaps the tottenham fans should have directed some hate towards him, he might then not have been top scorer in PL.

      1. Kane is a better striker this is his second consecutive season where he’s scored 20 goals in the EPL but Giroud in all his 4 years his best league tally is a mere 16 goals which is not good enough to make us challenge for any titles,in the last 5 years a winning team always has a 20 goal striker!

    2. I agree totally with every comment mad here re Giroud’s limited skills and his unsuitability as no. 1 striker. Simply not good enough. I would like to say however that I find it difficult to understand how that translates into booing him with vengeance on the field. Allow me to elaborate: Any person/player can only do the very best their skills enable them to do. If Giroud does that but it isn’t simple good enough at this level I don’t see what more he can do – take himself off the field? Refuse to be named on the team-sheet? Wouldn’t that be nonesense. Surely it is the manager who should be booed (if booing is due) when Giroud shows his lack of skills, since the manager is the one who persistently selects him, wouldn’t you agree?

      1. The reason I want to see Giroud replaced ASAP is because I have watched game after game where he was so static, not slow but a statue could have done half the game better.

        I actually think Giroud could be a world class player… if he would just give 110% in EVERY game, not just the ones where he needs to try hard to be starter again. Giroud has good games when he moved about, closes people down and use that frame of his to his advantage, a key player at times.

        You watch his bad games, how STATIC he is, how the game goes around him and it is like we are playing with 10 men, not 11.

        I do not understand what he could possibly be thinking, does he know how static he is being? Does he just want an easy game or something? It is frustrating to see him on the pitch when he is being the lazy Giroud and if he can not fight for his spot 100% of the time then I hope to see him replaced with someone who will.

  3. giroud deserves everything that is thrown at him . he is by far the worst striker ever to play for arsenal , certainally since i have been a gunner since 1968. nobody , but nobody comes anywhere near him as regards being a bad player . he spends more time on the pitch worrying about his hairdo than he does trying to score simple goals . the man is a total dead loss , he is a mule and an ass.to be paid the vast amount of money that he is to score goals for us is disgraceful . if he was in any other profession he would be sacked ages ago . but he is wengers baby boy and he will never be sacked . i am beginning to wonder does hair product come as part payment for a lot of the current arsenal squad , their priorities have left me scratching my head in wonderment .

  4. So Lewandowski has just come out and said Thierry Henry was his inspiration growing up watching the PL. Is his just a tease ? Is he hinting that Arsenal might be a possible destination ? Wenger please try go all out on him !

  5. With a very poor scoring record, and most of his time spent out wide at ManU, Welbeck was never the answer in a million years! Giroud is a very decent striker, but he’s been given more than a fair chance (four years as Wenger’s first choice), and just doesn’t score enough.

    With the amount of chances Ozil creates, a top striker will easily get more than 30 goals in all comps.

  6. if we think Xhaka’s signing solves a thing….. We are so wrong

    HELP!!!!.. STRIKER BADLY NEEDED!

  7. Did i hear someone say giroud is a good header of the ball?

    Right then we need giroud’s head with vardy’s speed and the feet of Messi….. Not his (Giroud) tongues tho! L()L

  8. There are a whole bunch of strikers available this window that are better than Giroud. I agree with the writer, Giroud has his place in Arsenal squad, but not no1. I think the biggest thing we need to look at here is how quickly (if at all) a striker can fit into a new club and league. This is why Lukaku would be my no1 choice – young, proven EPL, good all round striker. His goal tally in the last 3 seasons speak for itself – and this is with Everton. Just imagine with players like Ozil, Santi, Sanchez around him.

    What are you waiting for Wenger…the next Henry? oh wait…

  9. I just read that Giroud says the last season was one of his best in an Arsenal shirt,so there’s proof that the best he can do is 16 goals in a 38 game EPL season and he doesn’t deserve to be our main striker!

  10. 45million pounds on Lewandosky with a 200K wage should be good. We have the best midfield in England. Carzola, Xhaka, Ozil, Coquelin, Elneny, Wilshire, Ramsey, Iwobi. So much Quality. We need to learn from Leicester. Everyone playing for the team. Superb pressing. ruthlessness. Winger should give Campbell and Iwobi more chances next season. Sanchez as a striker next season. 4141 formation. Midfield rotation. Ozil should not play all the matches. Cazorla, Wilshire can play advanced roles next season. Oil should be advised to shoot more next season. He should be getting 15 goals a season as a playmaker. This squad we have can win the EPL. It’s all about believe, pressing, taking every game as a final. improving on fitness levels. better Ball retention skills. good shape and discipline. Giroud should be putting more pressure on opposition defence. Bellerin and Monreal should improve on their crosses. Giroud is a better header of the ball. This present squad can win the EPL. If Leicester could do it, we too can. At times, it’s not a case of buying, but buying the right personnel. Our defence and midfield is Well covered. I’m concerned about making progress in my life the Champions league.

  11. Didn’t even bother reading. The last part of the headline just pissed me off. SIMPLE. I honestly believe even Kane could have won us the league in Arsenal colours. Hate?? Lol. Which striker is fortunate to have Ozil and Sanchez around him to make him look good?? Ok, how many chances did Ozil create last season?? And how many goals did Giroud convert? Just imagine 3 of the high scoring strikers around Ozil and Sanchez. Just imagine that for a second. The look @ Giroud. Hahahahahaaa. Does Arsenal still need a striker?? What an amazing question to ask?? Suarez would have been sneezing goal here.

  12. Critic does’t mean hate. As a human being, I believe no one deserve hate. Some people might be easily affected by critics and fail to perform at all and contrarily, some people might be ignited by the critics and work hard to prove them selves. I think Giroud has found him self in the first group and needs support instead of hate. It is difficult to ask some body to perform more than his ability having at hand. Giroud is an average striker period. At his disposal, he can not score goals for fun like Messi, Ronaldo, Saurez etc. However, we are asking him to do like them which is not possible for him with range. Therefore, the only choice available for Arsenal is signing a better center forward and make Giroud to compete. Surely, he will be better than the current situation and help the club to get trophies.

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