According to his agent, Olivier Giroud is not spoiling for a showdown with Arsene Wenger about his future but there will be interest from clubs looking for a striker in January.
The 31-year-old recently revealed that France boss Didier Deschamp’s has advised him to look for more game time in the build-up to the World Cup although the player did make clear he’ll not be looking to leave the Emirates just for the sake of it.
Asked about his client’s state of mind and the fact Arsenal are on record saying they want to keep the player for the rest of the season, Michael Manuello told Foot Mercato:
“It [Wenger’s stance] could make things more complicated, but a clash [with the manager], that kind of thing, is not in Olivier’s nature, nor in mine.
“We always work in harmony, it’s normal for Arsene to make his position clear in public, it’s completely normal.
“We don’t have to comment on it elsewhere. Now, depending on what offers are put forward [in January], we’ll sit around the table and discuss.
“The most important thing to know is what’s on offer, or not, this winter and if there’s a better option. As things stand, it’s still necessary for that to be on offer.”
While Giroud is open to new challenges, apparently he was close to agreeing a deal with Borussia Dortmund in January, the player won’t be returning to France in the near future.
“Olivier will not come back to France,” confirmed Manuello.
“Unless there is a change in his state of mind, the intention is not to return to France. There has been no new approach by Marseille. I’ve had no information that Marseille has been trying to contact us.
“Our job is not to lock ourselves into something, we’re looking to expand [our options] as much as possible. Olivier was a champion in France, he’s done many things there, it’s more complicated to return. A return to France is always going to be more difficult. We’ll look outside of France is there’s an option.
“There will be approaches [in January]. All clubs looking for an attacker are likely to come forward. We must be careful and if there is something obvious that comes to the fore, we’ll try to convince Arsene to go back on what he has said.
Duchamp can do one!
Keep him. We need him.
Especially from the bench
“We always work in harmony, it’s normal for Arsene to make his position clear in public, it’s completely normal.
What exactly is the work that you do in harmony with Wenger, Mr. Agent? Your job is to be the bad cop, to mud the water and to hope that a bigger fish will come out. Zero added value, only speculations.
It’s a lot of clerical work to be a middle-man, and it exists because it is very quite necessary. There are a lot of bad agents that take advantage of the process, but no footballer has the time to manage the paperwork end of their lucrative careers and contract options–legalese, taxation, etc. Plenty of good agents who do quiet, good work.
As the summer ended, Ollie was quite content to stay and fight with the team knowing he’d be lower in the pecking order. He knew he’d play an important role in helping AFC compete on several levels.
…that was before City ran away with things 🙁
And now he’s changed his mind, which is fair.
Seems clear to me the agent is talking to attract offers. Now it comes down to clubs wanting Giroud. Let me tell u one thing, there are tons of clubs out there who could use a player of Giroud’s quality as a first team starter! I feel we will end up losing Giroud in Jan. And if that happens, we will urgently need a backup striker, and I don’t trust Welbeck’s fitness, Sanchez’s clumsiness, and Walcott’s..well…u know how it went when we tried playing walcott there… A few years ago, I would have loved Loic Remy, he’s like a great… Read more »
He’s on the wrong side of 30 to be too precious though. Move on by all means but what are his options, how much pitch time would he get and for how long?
From our perspective, say he does go, what like for like strikers are available? PL as well as foreign leagues. Any French or German lads who could fit be brought in at short notice?
As good as Giroud is, we must be honest with ourselves about this: he only overachieves when his position is under threat. Otherwise all he ever does is fall all over the place and cry Wolf.
I’m hoping there are stats somewhere that will prove how well he performed when we started using Walcott and Sanchez as central strikers and how his form slumps when Wenger stopped using them and reverts to him.
I personally am not surprised he’s doing so well as a sub and hardly makes an impact when he starts games this season.
Yeah damn him fighting for his place and thus getting us important goals. What a prick! Wagner IN!!!………
Disagree. Giroud’s stats suffer because of our style of play. I can’t pinpoint a single good crosser of the ball from our wing. Get someone such as Mahrez who can actually cross the ball well, and watch his stats shoot up. Giroud has a very particular set of skills. Skills he has acquired over a good career. Skills that make him a nightmare for defenses. If you let him go now that’ll be the end of it. But if you give him Mahrez, he will head the ball and he will kill you…I mean, score.
very good points. service is key for a player of his style. We have no natural replacement for times when we need a goal and teams put 11 behind the ball. And for all this noise about him needing more football, his France strike rate is ridiculous. As we move into later rounds of FA Cup and Europa, he’ll have plenty of minutes available.
Mahrez is far more an inverted ‘Robben’ winger type with tricky feet and a shot.
If we want crosses – lets go all out for Marc Albrighton.
During their title winning year, he provided Vardy with some breathtaking crosses
Wenger will certainly not sell Giroud in January.
The conundrum is he’s not quite good enough to be the main striker in a top 4 team (yes lol) but there isn’t a better back up striker in the league. (I don’t count aguero as back up because city basically have two first teams)
Ibra?
Really don’t want him to go, for the first time in a long time we’ve got great strength up front. What does frustrate me is Wengers only roll of the dice when things are going against us is to revert from 5-4-1 to 4-4-2 and swap a defender for Giroud. It’s basic and I can’t believe that a coach as decorated and respected as Wenger only has this up his sleeve
So list your football management credentials, boy.
I know it’s not the arsenal “way” but I’m a fan of Giroud’s and I’ve honestly thought over the years if our game plan was obnoxiously simple to the point that we just punt the ball at Giroud at any time that he isn’t being marked by 2-3 guys we’d have scored far far more goals and not given the “free roam players” enough time to expose gaps in our midfield/defence. But now I’m starting to see the same in Lacazette. We should aim to give him the ball every time he is not being marked by 2 guys and… Read more »
they will indeed
Stay with us, Olivier Giroud. We need you.
Seems like we will roll out a whole new team next season. But same manager, so nothing will change.
After the world cup this year, if France don’t win, they might look for a new manger. Arsene, is not getting any younger, if he doesn’t take the job this year, will he(or they) wait for another 2 or 4 years? If France offer him a 4 year contract now that would take him past the final year he would have left with us. And the recent backroom additions mean all that could happen.
I’d take Duchamp in return for Wenger. Don’t know much about him apart from his occasional moans about Giroud not getting enough game time but as France manager he can’t be bad.
After the World Cup there may be lots of top International managers looking for new jobs (Germany maybe). After the failure of keeping Sanchez on for his last season, now would be a good time for Wenger to announce his retirement & Gazidis to put some feelers out. We lost out before on top coaches with Wenger refusing to leave, now’s the time.
Giroud won’t be going anywhere in a world cup year. Even if he’s not first choice he knows he’ll get games and will be fit and healthy for France.
Deschamps seems to be making a mountain out of a mole hill. You have a player who will be game ready, fit and sharp for the world cup but you find this problematic because he isn’t playing every game in the Premier League. It’ll be one of the first competitions Giroud enters for France not completely burnt out. Also there is the prospect of forming an intelligent partnership with Lacazette in training and when one of them comes on from the bench in search for a winner. That could be an excellent asset for France. In a situation where the… Read more »
Arsenal often need a plan B. Often trying to weave intricate passes through a packed defense is difficult. Sometimes a ball high into the penalty area is different and pays dividends. So I would keel Giroud. It is the defence that wants changing