Former Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud has explained why he left the club in 2018. He recently had his say during an interview with the press, and fans have been reacting.
Speaking ahead of an emotional return to North London this week as Lille take on the Gunners in the UCL, Giroud revealed that leaving the Emirates Stadium was completely necessary to secure his place in the France squad for the World Cup.
Praising the style of play during his time in England, the Frenchman added that he adored the one-touch football he and his teammates perfected in the EPL.
His words, “It was part of my career and my time. I had to leave the club in order to play the 2018 World Cup and we know the end of the story.
I was really sad to leave the club but I had to make that choice and that was a tough one in my career but it was necessary and important for the rest of my career.
When I arrive at Arsenal, I improve a lot on my game thanks to the daily basics we were doing in training. Working on your technique, your one-touch finishing but also to link up the play, to deflect the play, to play one-touch for your teammates and finish quick in the box.
That was a perfect example. I improved a lot in that way, to be the target man, the wall a player can use to use me.”
Arteta added, “Every time you had him on the pitch, you had a massive threat inside the box. He was very smart. He was so good at connecting with other players as well and his work rate was phenomenal, so certainly not [underrated] by us.”
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