Arsenal: Olivier Giroud is needed, but only in a specific way

Arsene Wenger has stated that Arsenal need Olivier Giroud next season amid rumours linking him with an exit. While that is true, his services are only required in a very specific way: plan B.

Ever since the departure of Robin van Persie in 2012, the responsibility of leading the line has fallen on the broad shoulders of Olivier Giroud. The towering Frenchman has toiled and tried, showing a great physicality and power that has been most welcome in an Arsenal team that has often wilted under the physical challenge that many other Premier League sides pose.

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However, while he has found success on a number of occasions, showcasing a unique set of skills and abilities that, if tailored to correctly, can be a real benefit for the Gunners’ attacking potency, he has failed to ever provide the consistent, high-volume rate of scoring that is required from the leading centre-forward from a prospective title challenger.

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That is why, in his fifth season in North London, Arsene Wenger began to phase him out of the starting line-up, turning to the more mobile, dynamic options in Alexis Sanchez and Danny Welbeck. As a result, there have been many rumours linking Giroud with an exit this summer after becoming frustrated with the lack of opportunities that he is receiving, with some even suggesting that Wenger had told him that he could leave as he was endeavouring to find his replacement.

That, though, has since been dispelled, with Wenger revealing that he feels that Giroud offers qualities that Arsenal are still in need of:

"“It has been a frustrating season for him because he has not played a lot. And when he has played well, he has not always played the next match. He has won us a lot of points when he has come on because he has scored lots of times. He has qualities that our team need.”"

And Giroud certainly does still offer abilities that are needed. His size, his strength, his link-up skill, the focal point that he provides in the final third, especially with his back to goal, are all attributes that no other in the Arsenal squad can replicate. However, the perfect role for someone with such a set of skill is well-defined: It’s the plan B.

Giroud is the perfect plan B. When a goal is needed late in games, the opposition is sitting deep, defending stoutly, suffocating the space in the final third, there is no better player to turn to than Giroud. That is where he is needed.

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Unfortunately for Giroud, that is not where he wants to be. He wants to be the starring striker, the man which the attack is built around and tailored to. But that role is no longer his. That does not mean he is not needed, but he could still lead to an exit this summer nonetheless.