Wednesday night’s goalscoring hero Olivier Giroud has “special qualities” according to Arsene Wenger, which make him one of the best in Europe.
The French international scored his first Arsenal hat-trick at the perfect moment – a game Arsenal had to win by two clear goals.
It was an emphatic message to his critics, of which there are many.
There was even talk out of the Emirates in the summer that his manager was seeking a new first choice striker and his national colleague, Karim Benzema, was the number one target.
No one arrived and the Arsenal striker, now into his fourth season in north London, continues to silence the doubters with an impressive goal record which stands at 71 goals in 120 appearances – and 10 goals in 12 this term.
Wenger spoke highly about the former Montpellier man’s ability to deal with the adversity.
He has gone through this calendar year with ups and downs but overall it is typical Olivier Giroud. That means when it doesn’t work, he puts effort in. I believe recently he has come back with an improved game and with his finishing. Wednesday was one of his best performances on all fronts, I must say. If you look at his record, I believe he has special qualities that are difficult to find.
Signed in 2012 for roughly £10million, Giroud played second fiddle at the start of the season to Theo Walcott.
At the start of last season, Yaya Sanogo was given a chance ahead of him as he fought to get fit following the World Cup. Then he suffered a broken tibia at Everton.
He was booed off at the Emirates after a string of awful misses against AS Monaco in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League, but each time Giroud has battled to regain his place.
He’s a guy who wants always to improve and he has a positive mentality, and a strong one.
I think that’s why he has come back in a very strong way. We are in a job where you have to accept that in every game, you are questioned. In his job, as a centre forward, [it’s] even more.
If you look at the number of games and the number of goals, you have to give him credit. He’s not only a goalscorer, he’s a guy who puts work in for the team.
According to Wenger, Giroud’s improvement in his hold up play makes him one of the most dangerous strikers on the continent.
Where he has improved a lot is his link play with the other players, and that’s very important in our team.
I think he’s among the best strikers in Europe.
