Arsenal: Olivier Giroud Has Built Himself An Insurmountable Pedestal

Arsenal have one striker: Olivier Giroud. That is all they have had since Lukas Podolski was deemed inadequate. And it makes sense why. Who else could be good enough?

For quite some time now I have been crying for a new striker at Arsenal. Not one to replace Giroud, but one to compete with Giroud. I have been whining about it so much that some of you have been kind enough to call me a whiner in the comments. I’ll accept that. Mainly because it’s going to be going on for awhile longer.

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One year ago I referred to Olivier Giroud as ‘elite‘ and was laughed at so hard I could hear it through my computer speakers. Now, everyone is calling him elite. He has grown with the times to statistically back up the claims.

Olivier Giroud has monopolized Arsenal’s starting striker position. Originally, it was highly criticized and referred to as the one thing holding Arsenal back. However, those silly critiques have sense disappeared as Giroud continues to prove himself.

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But that has created a tiny little problem as a byproduct in the process.

The Telegraph made the very astute claim that Arsenal do not need that overpriced elite striker because they already have one in Olivier Giroud. But he did not come that way. Arsenal have not bought an elite striker since Dennis Bergkamp. Thierry Henry, Robin van Persie and Giroud were all turned elite from their time at Arsenal.

Therein lies the problem. I am not alone in wanting a striker to compete with Olivier Giroud. But no one that Arsenal would potentially want to buy could compete with Olivier Giroud. At least not right away. It would take several years to see them converted into elite talents. By that time Olivier Giroud will have reached 33, 34 years of age and it will be time for a changing of the guard.

That is why Danny Welbeck is so important. If he cannot challenge Olivier Giroud, then Giroud will have no legitimate challengers for the rest of his Arsenal career. Theo Walcott does not count. He was like a pinch hitter that showed some good signs but he is never going to be the same high-impact striker that Giroud is.

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The only strikers that could challenge Giroud upon immediate arrival would be guys like Lewandowski, Benzema or Cavani. But they are overpriced and would expect to be starting day in and day out, not challenging. And yes, Giroud does deserve to be mentioned alongside those names. He has proven it by going two straight years now with a minutes-per-goal ratio that puts him in the top ten strikers in the world.

Arsene Wenger is not going to buy a world class striker to compete with Giroud. It’s not in his DNA, nor should it be. Purchases like Kokorin, Austin and Pato could grow into the role but for those couple years that we would have to wait, Giroud would be unchallenged still and by the end of it all, he would be nearing retirement.

So, from a purely pessimistic standpoint, Giroud has created for himself such a pedestal that he cannot be challenged. Not along the Arsenal way of doing things. He would need someone like himself back in 2012 to come along, but it took him two, three years to get to where he is now. Therefore he would need someone like himself to have come around two years ago. Not a likely proposition. It looks like Lukas Podolski is the closest thing Arsenal will have ever had to challenge Giroud.

It’s a double-edged sword. Olivier Giroud is clearly easily motivated by competition but that competition is impossible to come by because of how much he has grown into Arsenal.

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On the bright side, next time I want to get mad at Arsene Wenger for not challenging Giroud, I will just get mad at Giroud for being so good instead.