Arsene Wenger has revealed that Olivier Giroud’s recovery from his broken tibia is ahead of schedule after a successful operation.
The French international has been on the sidelines for 51 days since suffering the injury in the final moments of Arsenal’s 2-2 draw against Everton but appears to be on track to return within the four-month rehabilitation timeframe initially outlined.
Speaking about the striker while working as a pundit for beIN Sports, Wenger noted: “Olivier Giroud is recovering very well. I believe he is ahead of schedule in terms of rehabilitation. The operation went perfectly.”
In Giroud’s absence Wenger bolstered his attacking options with the transfer deadline day signing of Danny Welbeck offering the England international an opportunity to shine in his preferred central attacking position.
Reflecting on whether the ex-Manchester United man will be able to function alongside Giroud – who has led the line in the previous two seasons – the boss hinted that there’s room to accommodate both players.
“Welbeck and [Giroud] can play together in the centre or separately. Welbeck also played on one side to Manchester United. Welbeck played in the same team with Rooney and van Persie. He can play down the sides.”
Given the potential and pace that Welbeck has demonstrated in his first couple of months at the Emirates he’ll probably not take too kindly to being shifted out wide, especially as he’s spoken so passionately about his desire to play in the centre after his experience at Old Trafford.
Given Theo Walcott has spoken in the past of his desire to lead the line, the brief experiment using Alexis Sanchez in the position and Yaya Sanogo’s ‘qualities’ it looks like the boss will have some tinkering ahead. Of course, that’s assuming all the options are fit and available at the same time…something that right now seems hard to imagine.
Woj up front alongside Kos ze boss!
This sounds like bad news for Welbeck. Plus the fact that Özil is out. They seemed to start develop some chemistry.
Ozil has no chemistry with any of the players especially when Wenger puts him left wing.
Funnily enough, this isn’t fifa bitch 🙂
Naaaaaanaaaa naaanaa Girouuud!!!
‘Qualities’
Next he’s had a set back.
While I’m all for getting this beautiful, handsome bastard back into the side and the news that he is ahead of schedule is excellent, I’d much rather he took an extra week/fortnight of rehab to really ensure he’s physically ready. If you’re ahead of schedule that’s great, wonderful for the team and for Giroud. After suffering such a nasty injury I wouldn’t want him to come back too soon, it’s not worth it.
I shouldn’t worry about Giroud at the moment. I suspect this announcement is purely for PR purposes, to raise the spirits and quieten criticism after Oezil and Kos got sent back home. Anyway, ‘I believe he is ahead of schedule’ isn’t exactly a definite statement, let alone one that makes me think Giroud will be returning earlier than expected. Whether he does get rushed back before he’s properly ready will probably depend on who else is injured and how desperately we need him. Same goes for Kos who has been playing since the start of the season with an Achilles… Read more »
Let’s just play 4-4-2. We were invincible with this tried and tested formation. I don’t think we’ve ever quite got our head around one up top. I don’t understand how a formation can suddenly be so redundant when all the greatest teams of times past used it.
It’s called evolution. The dominant powers of European football moved away from that system ages ago to create variety and add elements of surprise and hence, as a consequence things change. Why shouldn’t we embrace change with the times?
Although, on an unrelated note, what disheartens me is that Wenger was lauded for his pioneering work in training methods, formations, etc. When he makes a change now, there’s this incessant clamor about how it is wrong. Irony.
We don’t really have the right midfielders to play a 4-4-2. Maybe Ramsey (if he’s fit and back in form) or Flamini at a pinch fits the box to box role, but I don’t see who will play the other role well. Ozil doesn’t work hard enough, Santi is a bit of a lightweight and very much suited to play in and around their penalty area, Jack maybe could (he is playing deeper for England after all) – potentially Arteta I suppose?
off-topic: Whats with those rumours about Özil wanting to leave?
Well, since it’s only Metro, the Mail and the Mirror who are reporting them, I’d take it with a pinch of salt for the moment, but it’s a fair question seeing as Oezil has been very outspoken before about his loathing of being played out wide, both for Germany and by Wenger, so I’ll have a quick look at some of the German papers and see if there are any real quotes.
Whatever, I can’t see him being allowed to leave in January.
Nope, nothing in the most likely places (Bild, SDZ) so when the Mirror says ‘it is reported’ they must mean by themselves. I wouldn’t rule out Bayern trying in the summer, though. They’ve just landed themselves a whole lot more money and Oezil is very much Pep’s type.
Honestly the thought alone scares me. We’ve just come out of that horrid cycle of selling our best players and even if we’re not seeing it now, this is the best arsenal squad in a long long time and Ozil is ( going to be ) a huge part of that.
Relax and check Özil’s twitter guys. We’re all good.
cheers.
can’t really see how people would downvote a simple question though, or are off-topic remarks frowned upon that badly?
A case could be made to play two up top again, Giroud and Welbeck. If nothing else it does give us that “plan B” we’re always looking for!!
Like he played HFB and Yaya late in games a few times last year.
have you guys heard the ozil bayern rumors?
Not paying any attention to that fabricated bollocks.
Fabregated?
Clickbait. Total clickbait.
An Arsenal player recovering ahead of schedule? I’ll believe it when I see it.
Yes Ghanagunner, about as likely as the Cavani to arsenal rumors 🙂
from what I understand we’re lining up Cavani for 55m, Benzema for 30m, Draxler for 37m, Kadhera for 10m, Aymeric Laporte for 37m, not to mention Rabiot and Cleverly
You forgot the deal that has already been done: Kalou for 10 million.
Is Sebastien Frey available?
We can finally wrap up the Chris Samba deal.
Gourcuff on his way, part exchange for Podolski.
Giroud+Welbeck=Handsomely Dark…Handsomely winning our first champions league Trophy…#No Homo..
Mind the misuse of punctuation its a hot boring day in my area plus I’m stoned hahaha I hate the spuds…
Forgiven, all excellent excuses
I jst hope all the players return from internatioinal duties without any scare…… This is a positive news concerning G12oud….. Welbeck has displayed his qualities as a potent weapon infront of goals so why shipping him to the wing now become an alternative…. I think we need intense competition in that striking position rather than having trial n error
You don’t announce that when a player get back from injury that he’s no longer needed or that a ‘present’ player won’t play when another gets back from injury.
So what else is AW supposed to say when the press ask him the question?
WOULD YOU RATHER SEE OZIL OUT TO TAKE CAVANI?….
*Yawn*
Read this excellent article on Falcao and Cavani by Naveen. It is quite insightful:
http://www.7amkickoff.com/2014/sanchez-and-welbeck-buying-assets-at-the-right-time/
Hopefully we can accommodate both strikers at the same time.don’t want Webz to be deployed wide plus Walcott will be back soon.
for ozil to be among the arsenal team come january wenger should buy a natural DM to help cover for oxil’s defensive disabilities plus to play him in his preferred position….if he cant fulfill these then i think oxil is better off somewhere else
You’d allow our 42 million pound record signing #10 to be sold in the january transfer window due to his “defensive disabilities”……I am so very tempted to feed this particular troll
he doesn’t even play the number fucking 10 for us….does he?
Oxil…
Nuff said
I’ve always rated Oxil quite highly. I think he, Wilcott and Welbexis are really good footballers.
Wogner out?
@Dylan… that would have been a valid point if we actually used him at #10. if we insist on using him out wide, then he has to shape up or get out. i’m not blaming ozil, we knew his game before buying him.
couldn’t agree more…the only person who is actually making sense on here
You can’t seriously believe that he’s permanently being fixed onto the left wing from now on, we’ve seen plenty of midfielders spending a short time out wide in the past few years (e.g. Wilshere/Ramsey), i’d say it’s gone quiet well in the long run. Especially now with Walcott back i can definitely see Ozil been switched back to the #10.
I’m not saying statistics are the end all be all but get this. Squawka has Ozil’s defensive ranking per 90 at 7.3 while Alexis is at -3.75. Hmmmm. Food for thought. They also have Arteta as our highest rated player in the EPL this season per 90.
Anyone doubting Ozils contribution last year check this article from the EPL themselves.
http://www.premierleague.com/en-gb/news/news/2014-15/oct/opta-blog-on-true-pass-masters.html
It’s the internet, no one has time for actual statistics only recycled mindless rabble.
I miss Giroud. What he offers is so underrated.
That doesn’t alter the fact that he’s no good in front of goal.
No, but bringing other goalscorers into play reduces its importance a bit, as does helping relieve pressure by holding up play. And he still led the team in goals.
Oxil better off somewhere else? You mean we’ve finally succeeded with our “combine two midfielders into one super sub-human beast” experiment only to let him leave in January? That’s it for me. #WengerOut
you can be as snide as you like with your comment but the fact remains, he’s better off somewhere else if he wont be played in his best position here ( a position he specifically asked to be played in)
You either have a hidden agenda, are poorly read on the subject, or don’t watch very critically. The idea that Ozil is playing as a traditional winger is so far off. Find his heat maps for this season, look at any of the videos where they show a single players full game, or re watch a full match without all the emotion. He plays anywhere he sees fit and the only time he has a “position” is when the opposition have the ball. And even that is dictated by where he is on the field when the opposition gain possession… Read more »
Finally, a little bit of good news, i was starting to look like Maureen with all the injury updates
Welbeck up top on his own; bring on Giroud to crash and smash the net when we are behind. Or replace Welbeck with Giroud when we want to slow the game down and have some extra coverage when defending set pieces.
Anyone else see that nonsense about Ozil wanting to leave in the Daily Mail? The Daily Mail makes the Sun look like a reputable paper…
That’s why the only time you should look at it is when checking to see if the birdcage needs a clean.
Does anyone even keep birds anymore?
Am I the only one thinking of Giroud being converted to a Dmf…. Wenger is good at that
Funny…
Oh no, more tinkering! Haven’t we had enough tinkering this season? Isn’t it about time we stop these weird experiments and stick with something that actually works?
What is he supposed to say when the a hack asks if they can play together?
Theo Walcott signed a three-year contract almost two years ago. Talks for extension will have to start in 2015. The system of equations of who should start as a center forward will get very very complex especially if Theo scores goals.
Let’s hope it’s not a drawn out affair like last time.
No surprise if Theo leaves to be honest.
For us, he is better coming in from the wing.
The way we play with either Welbeck or Giroud (or indeed Sanogo) up front, either flank balances off by pushing in the wide attacking player as a second striker closer to the middle when the other flank has the ball.
Thereby Walcott, and indeed, Podolski, Campbell, Ox, Gnabry are all expected to cut in and join the main striker to make numbers closer to the box (ostensibly playing off the big man)
Theo won’t be leaving. He’s the most effective finisher of the lot you listed other than Poldi, but in contrast to Poldi he doesn’t kill the momentum and doesn’t look totally lost when we have possession. Pushing in as second striker and getting to the byline to feed either Giroud or Welbeck is exactly where Theo is most valuable – and deadly. If he’s not broken, he’s invaluable in my opinion. I think he will be convinced (and is best off) to play in that wing/ wide striker role. My gut and what I see tells me Poldi and Campbell… Read more »
No rush ollie. Dans got this.
Regarding the rumour about Ozil wanting out (which I don’t believe, mainly because it’s from the Daily Mail), I do have a question. The Mail suggests that one cause of Ozil’s unhappiness is that he’s being played out of position. I was under the impression that when he has been played on the flank, Ozil has been given the freedom to roam and to cut inside. Wouldn’t this liberty go a long way to mitigate any dislike he might feel about his being shunted out wide? As I currently reside out of the UK, I don’t always have access to… Read more »
Ozil has the freedom to play wherever he thinks will be most dangerous. Wide on either side, in the middle close to the striker or from deep. All this “shunted out to the wing” stuff is nonsense. The only time it seems that he has a position is on defense and even that seems dependent on where he is when the other team gains possession. Get an account on Arsenal Player, it’s free. You can’t watch the games in real time but within a day or two you can watch full match’s, highlights and a show called The Breakdown witch… Read more »
It’s not worth that much thought, really. It’s a fabrication to get gullible and easy-to-rile Gooners to click on a link or buy a paper so they can sell advertising.
Come back OG12… We’ve missed your wholesome misses.
HE put in 20++ goals last season, just saying. If he needs to miss a bunch to put that many in, so be it.;)
Welbeck on the wing to accomodate Giroud would be a tactical disaster when you have walcott, ox and sanchez at your disposal. Then again with wenger it sometimes feels like he sets a team up for free style play. With Ozil out we can now finally play with two wingers a striker in welbeck and Giroud coming off the bench in case of plan B and carzola pulling strings in the middle.
With Ozil out, it may be a blessing in disguise as it will force Wenger to use our natural wingers more often providing the team with a bit more width.
Ox will benefit but there is of course also Podolski, Walcott returning and young Gnabry too. And there’s Campbell. All will add a different measure in more direct running. May be better for the balance of the team.
Frankly felt Ozil and Santi should have been rotating as AM in the middle dependent on who was in form.
Giroud on the mend? Hey maybe he can play at Cback for us.;)
Different tools.
Giroud is more suited to teams who sit back against us and stay compact
Where Welbeck is better against teams who are more ready to come at us opening space for him to exploit through pace.
I don’t see an issue here. Both are in equal measures very useful.
That’s another option..
He’s more suited to teams that are shit! Why do people always say he scored 20 goals like that’s some sort of achievement? Henry used to bang in 40 a season, in that teams our wingers were getting close to 20 a season.
Henry was one of the greatest strikers to ever play the game for one of the greatest teams ever assembled. 20 goals and 8 assists in a season is a very nice achievement especially when you consider that more and more Wenger seems to prefer a more diverse scoring threat as opposed to one “main” man. Take away that one man and then what?
Sorry, but in which seasons did Henry “bang in” 40 goals?
Maybe it’s my old age and all the weed smoking, but I don’t remember.
According to Wiki, in 3/4 he got 39 (30 in the league).
A few other years he got low 30s.
Although he did make quite a few of his goals.
But just to show how stats lie, Adebayor got 30 in 7/8 but a decent goal-scorer would have been in treble figures with the number of chances he got that year.
1886, there is and will ever be only one Thierry Henry.
Comparing all else to him does not make any sense at all.
Players injured/unfit at some point this season:
Debuchy, Gibbs, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Arteta, Podolski, Wilshere, Ozil, Giroud, Ospina, Walcott, Ramsey, Monreal, Flamini, Sanogo, Diaby, Gnabry
17 first team players out for one reason or another in 2 months.
Most brittle team ever.
Well, if you have the secret power of bringing ’03/’04 Henry back, I’m cool with letting Giroud go. If not, you might want to support the guy who scored the most goals for us last season.
I’m looking forward to the problem of too many good, healthy players on the team. That seems like a nice problem.
Soon as Arsene’s son Giroud is fit he’ll drop Welbeck! Let’s drop someone who has pace and runs in behind for a slow gangly target man! If Wenger was to play 4-4-2 with the 2 of them up front I wouldn’t have an issue with Giroud being in the side…but as we know Arsene NEVER changes his tactics or formations…..FRUSTRATING!
Giroud is not good enough. Sooner gooners wake up and realise that the better.
name the top 10 strikers in the world… Some may ‘hold the ball up well’ but all of them score goals… 20 goals a season is not an achievement its a bare minimum requirement for any striker that wants to play for arsenal.
Giroud is 2nd rate and no other top team would want him. Wellbeck offers so much more and while maybe not that far ahead of giroud right now, with game time up top he has the potential to be very good.