Arsenal have officially confirmed the signing of France international Olivier Giroud from Montpellier for a reported £13million.
The 25-year old striker completed a medical before agreeing terms at Arsemal’s training ground on Monday evening. The completion of the transfer is now just the subject of formal processes.
Giroud, whose 21 goals in 36 league appearances made him the French league’s joint top goalscorer last season and also earned him a place in the Ligue 1 Team of the Year.
Manager Arsène Wenger said:
“We are delighted to have secured the signing of Olivier Giroud. He has a very good physical presence and is exceptional in the air, with a great work ethic. We are excited about Olivier joining us and he will add an additional dimension to our attacking options next season.
“He has proved that he is capable of performing at the top level with club and country, and we saw what a big influence he was in Montpellier’s championship-winning side last season. We all look forward to Olivier joining us and seeing him play in an Arsenal shirt.”
Giroud, whose contract with Arsenal will officially commence on July 1, said:
“I am delighted to be here at Arsenal and to be part of one of the great teams in English football. It’s a huge satisfaction to join this great club and it’s been a dream since I was young to play in the Premier League.
“I was attracted by the philosophy of football and Arsène Wenger’s ‘touch’ at this club. I have always admired Arsenal with its great history and reputation, and I now hope to achieve great things here. I’m very proud to be a Gunner and I will give my best for all the Arsenal fans.”
As I have written before, Giroud is a terrific signing and along with the earlier signing of Lukas Podolski gives Wenger some good attacking options that he has lacked over the past couple of years. Now if Robin van Persie decides to leave, Arsenal still have some quality attacking options, instead of relying on the likes of Chamakh and Bendtner.
But the next piece of business for Arsenal has to be to get van Persie and Theo Walcott signed to new long-term deals. If they can do that, then this will have been a very good transfer window for Arsenal.
