I know that we seem to have this discussion every year, but the fact is that three seasons after leaving Arsenal, Olivier Giroud is still knocking in goals whenever he is given the chance at Chelsea. I am sure you all know that Giroud was given one of those chances last night and scored a perfect hat-trick against Sevilla, and then topped it off with a penalty. At 34 years of age, he has not lost his ability one iota despite being only a back up to Timo Werner and Tammy Abraham, but he always offers a “Plan B”.
Thereis every chance that Arsenal could bring Giroud back cheaply in January if we offer him more regular football, as every time there is a big international tournament, Didier Deschamps tells Giroud that he needs to move on to play more often, and yet again last month the France coach said: “Olivier Giroud knows it – the situation he’s in today cannot drag on forever. Before March he will have to find another situation than this one,” Deschamps told French radio station RTL (as quoted on TalkSport): “It is for him to see, he will decide.
“But in terms of the France team, psychologically and physically for him, he has every interest in having playing time. I hope that by January he will have more playing time.
“After that, he will stay [in the squad] or he won’t. He knows what I think about it, I told him, although I don’t forget what he can do and what he might be able to do again.”
Even Lampard admitted that he was open to discussions about Giroud’s future. He told the Guardian: “I do have plans [for him] and Oli is an important member of our squad,”
“Look at his Chelsea career. He will always want to play more. I know he will be important for me going forwards so I want Oli to stay because of the way he is playing. I have a good relationship with him and if he ever felt that way I will have a conversation with him. But I want him to stay here and am very open both ways. At the moment I want him to stay.”
Call me fickle if you like, but I would certainly choose Giroud over some of our underperforming strikers right now, and after only playing once in the League for Chelsea this season, I am sure he would get much more game-time under Arteta.
We know Giroud doesn’t want to leave London, so why shouldn’t we bring him back to the Emirates?
Admin Pat