Olivier Giroud Sets Amazing Record To Solidify Status As Elite Striker

Olivier Giroud is a hotly contested name. Some people are all about what he brings to the team. Some people, not so much. He has been called a lamp post, something that he even acknowledged and apologized for following his rather poor match against Monaco in North London. But one constant has always been found in Olivier Giroud’s career. He scores goals. That is a forward’s number one job. Just ask Danny Welbeck.

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Olivier Giroud’s season has been superb. In 15 starts between club and country, he has scored 15 goals (via WhoScored). For those of you that are hard at math, that means that he averages a goal every time he is on the pitch for the opening whistle. At Arsenal, he has six goals in 621 appearances.

Olivier Giroud has only improved since he was bought as the Ligue 1 lead scorer in 2012. Formerly at Montpellier, Olivier Giroud did not exactly hit the ground running. It took him seven matches to finally score his first goal. A goal against Coventry in the Capital One Cup. He would not score his first Premier League goal until three matches later against West Ham.

But since then, Olivier Giroud has a very impressive-goal scoring record. And he set an even more impressive record when he scored for France against Germany.

Nothing is more impressive than beating the best in the business. But to do it three straight matches, something no one else has done, is amazing. Manuel Neuer is not just any old goal keeper and these were not just any old goals. Granted, the first one, which involved him falling into the ball, was a bit fortuitous but the second two were mighty impressive. Particularly the one against Bayern in the second leg. Even if it was pointless in the grand scheme.

Olivier Giroud continues to impress us with numbers, with goals and with his hold up, physical play style. Yet he is continuously ignored and mocked for his missed chances. Everybody misses chances. Olivier Giroud is a member of the group ‘everybody’.

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He is a striker that can win Arsenal silverware. Technically, he already has. Two FA Cups may be considered ‘minor’ hardware, but Arsenal is just now getting passed the stage of paying off the Emirates. Now that they can build a team, Giroud will start looking even better.

It is just a matter of time.