Olivier Jonathan Giroud (born 30 September 1986) is a French professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
who plays as a
striker for club
AC Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seasons ...
and the
France national team. Regarded for his work-rate, strength, acrobatic strikes, shot power, consistent goal-scoring ability and aesthetically significant goals which had made him one of the few players to win the
FIFA Puskás Award
The FIFA Puskás Award is an award established on 20 October 2009 by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association ( FIFA), at the behest of then-president Sepp Blatter, to be awarded to the male or female judged to have scored the mo ...
. He is often considered one of the best
strikers
Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...
of his generation.
Giroud began his senior club career playing for hometown club
Grenoble
lat, Gratianopolis
, commune status = Prefecture and commune
, image = Panorama grenoble.png
, image size =
, caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...
, before he signed with
Tours
Tours ( , ) is one of the largest cities in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 ...
in 2008, aged 21. He was named
Ligue 2
Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by Balkrishna Industries, is a French professional football league. The league serves as the second division of French football and is one of two divisions ...
Player of the Year
Several sports leagues honour their best player with an award called Player of the Year (POY) . In the United States, this type of award is usually called a Most Valuable Player award.
Association football
In association football, this award is he ...
in 2010 after finishing as the league's top goalscorer. He was subsequently the subject of a then-club record
association football transfer when he moved to
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...
in a transfer worth €2 million, winning the club's first
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
title and finishing as league top goalscorer in
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
. He then joined
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
, where he won three
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
s to help end Arsenal's
nine-year trophy drought, and is the club's
eighteenth-highest all-time goalscorer. Giroud signed for crosstown
rivals
A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant o ...
Chelsea in 2018 in a transfer worth £18 million (€20.7 million), winning the FA Cup, the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
, and the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
, finishing as top goalscorer in the latter in
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
. Giroud then signed for AC Milan in 2021, helping them win the
2021–22 Serie A
The 2021–22 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 120th season of top-tier Italian football, the 90th in a round-robin tournament, and the 12th since its organization under an own league committee, the Lega Serie ...
, which ended the club's 11-year league title drought.
Giroud made his senior international debut for France in 2011 at age 25, and has since earned
120 caps, including appearing in six major tournaments. He is his country's
all-time top goalscorer, receiving the
Bronze Boot
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids suc ...
as joint second-highest goalscorer as France finished runner-up at
UEFA Euro 2016
The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe o ...
. He later won the
2018 FIFA World Cup
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national Association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awa ...
, and appeared at
UEFA Euro 2020
The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...
as well as the
2022 FIFA World Cup
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is an international association football, football tournament contested by the men's national teams of FIFA's member associations. The 22nd FIFA World Cup is taking place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022 ...
, where France finished as runners-up and Giroud again received the
Bronze Boot
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids suc ...
.
Early life
Olivier Giroud was born in
Chambéry
Chambéry (, , ; Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the prefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. The population of the commune of Chambéry was 58,917 as of 2019, while the population of the Chambér ...
, France in the
Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes () was an administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it is part of the new region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the river Rhône an ...
region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
, and was raised in the nearby village of
Froges
Froges () is a commune in the Isère department in southeastern France. It is part of the Grenoble urban unit The urban unit of Grenoble (french: unité urbaine de Grenoble) is a French urban unit centred on the city of Grenoble. An urban unit ...
, close to
Grenoble
lat, Gratianopolis
, commune status = Prefecture and commune
, image = Panorama grenoble.png
, image size =
, caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...
.
Giroud is of
Italian descent through both of his grandmothers.
Independently of his professional career, Giroud, after obtaining his
baccalaureate Baccalaureate may refer to:
* ''Baccalauréat'', a French national academic qualification
* Bachelor's degree, or baccalaureate, an undergraduate academic degree
* English Baccalaureate, a performance measure to assess secondary schools in England ...
in
economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...
and
social sciences
Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soci ...
(ES), completed a second year of a degree in
science and techniques of physical and sports activities (STAPS) at the
Joseph Fourier University
Joseph Fourier University (UJF, french: Université Joseph Fourier, also known as Grenoble I) was a French university situated in the city of Grenoble and focused on the fields of sciences, technologies and health. It is now part of the Universit ...
, in Grenoble.
Giroud began organised football playing for his hometown club, Olympique Club de Froges. He spent six years training at the club before joining professional club
Grenoble
lat, Gratianopolis
, commune status = Prefecture and commune
, image = Panorama grenoble.png
, image size =
, caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...
at the age of 13.
Club career
Grenoble
Giroud spent five years developing in Grenoble's youth academy before signing his first professional contract at the age of 21. He later admitted that signing his first contract was an important part in his development as a player, stating "It took me signing my first professional contract to become aware of my abilities. If you
clubtrusted me, it was because I must have had some qualities."
Ahead of the
2005–06 season, he was promoted to the club's reserve team, which was playing in the
Championnat de France Amateur 2
The Championnat National 3, commonly referred to as simply National 3 and formerly known as Championnat de France Amateur 2, is a football league competition. The league serves as the fifth division of the French football league system behind ...
, the fifth level of
French football
Association football is the most popular sport in France. The French Football Federation (FFF, Fédération Française de Football) is the national governing body and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of association football in the cou ...
. Giroud quickly became an important player in the team scoring 15 goals in 15 matches.
His performances over seven months with the reserve team resulted in the player being called up to the senior team in March 2006 by manager
Thierry Goudet
Thierry Goudet (born 11 November 1962 in Château-Gontier, France) is a football coach and former player who played as a midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively de ...
. Giroud made his professional debut on 27 March appearing as a late-match substitute in a 1–1 draw with
Gueugnon
Gueugnon () is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France.
Population
Economy
The primary industry in the town is a stainless-steel factory run by Aperam. A huge part of Gueugnon ...
in
Ligue 2
Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by Balkrishna Industries, is a French professional football league. The league serves as the second division of French football and is one of two divisions ...
. He remained a part of the senior team for the rest of the campaign making five more substitute appearances.
Giroud was promoted to the senior team permanently for the
2006–07 season by new manager Payton Pouliquen and Nicola Malgeri and was assigned the number 22 shirt. After appearing as a substitute in the team's first league match of the campaign, he made his first professional start in a 2–1 defeat away to
Niort
Niort (; Poitevin: ''Niàu''; oc, Niòrt; la, Novioritum) is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department, western France. It is the prefecture of Deux-Sèvres.
The population of Niort is 58,707 (2017) and more than 177,000 people live in the u ...
playing the entire match. On 26 February 2007, Giroud scored his first professional goal netting the
injury time
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
winner against
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...
. He described the goal as "a fantastic memory. I could not dream better for a first pro goal". A month later, Giroud made his third start of the campaign against Gueugnon. In the match, which ended 0–0, Giroud incurred his first professional
red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction.
Red card may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers
* Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or d ...
. He finished the campaign with 18 total appearances and two goals as Grenoble finished in fifth place.
Loan to Istres
In an attempt to earn some playing time, Giroud spent the
2007–08 season on loan at
Istres
Istres (; Occitan: Istre) is a commune in southern France, some 60 km (38 mi) northwest of Marseille. It is in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture.
Location
Istr ...
in the
Championnat National
The Championnat de France National ( en, French National Championship), commonly referred to as simply National or Division 3, serves as the third division of the French football league system behind Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. Contested by 18 clubs, t ...
, the third level of football in France.
Under the tutelage of manager
Frédéric Arpinon, he continued his development as a striker and, in his second match with the club, scored his first goal in a 2–1 win over
Laval
Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of:
People
* House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne
* Laval (surname)
Places Belgium
* Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxem ...
. Two weeks later, Giroud scored goals in back-to-back matches against
Vannes
Vannes (; br, Gwened) is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago.
History Celtic Era
The name ''Vannes'' comes from the Veneti, a seafaring Celtic people who lived ...
and
Créteil
Créteil () is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, Île-de-France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Créteil is the ''préfecture'' (capital) of the Val-de-Marne department as well as the seat of the Arrondissement of Cré ...
. He scored his first double of the season in a 2–0 win against
Arles-Avignon. A fortnight later, Giroud converted two goals again, this time in a 3–2 win over
Pau. After going through the months of November and December without scoring a league goal, Giroud returned to form in January scoring goals in a 3–2 defeat to Vannes and a 2–0 win over
Beauvais
Beauvais ( , ; pcd, Bieuvais) is a city and commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise département, in the Hauts-de-France region, north of Paris.
The commune of Beauvais had a population of 56,020 , making it the most populous ...
. He finished the campaign by scoring goals in April league fixtures against
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
and
Martigues
Martigues ( in classical norm, ''Lou Martegue'' in Mistralian norm) is a commune northwest of Marseille. It is part of the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the eastern end of the Canal de Caronte.
A dir ...
, which brought his total goal tally with Istres to 14. Of the 14 goals, Giroud only scored four at the
Stade Parsemain, Istres' home stadium.
After a successful loan stint, Giroud returned to Grenoble with hopes of receiving some significant playing time as the club was now playing in
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
. However, club manager
Mehmed Baždarević
Mehmed Baždarević (born 28 September 1960) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player. He was most recently the manager of Ligue 2 club Guingamp.
Baždarević played for Bosnian side Željezničar and French outfit Sochaux, ...
, who was hired while Giroud was on his loan stint at Istres, deemed the player surplus to requirements and, subsequently, listed him for transfer. According to reports, Baždarević had declared that Giroud "did not have the level to play among the elite".
In 2011, Giroud reevaluated his departure from Grenoble stating "I am neither resentful nor vengeful. I am just disappointed with what happened to Grenoble when there was great potential".
Tours
On 28 May 2008, it was reported that Giroud had agreed to a three-year deal with Ligue 2 club
Tours
Tours ( , ) is one of the largest cities in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 ...
. The striker was lured to the club by sporting director Max Marty who had previously served as the chief executive officer of Grenoble, Giroud's former club.
Giroud was also fond of Tours' manager
Daniel Sanchez stating "It's always a plus to have a former striker as a coach. His advice to me really helped a lot. With him, I progressed in my positioning and also in front of goal".
Giroud was given the number 12 shirt and, due to injury, made his club debut on 3 September 2008 in a 2–1 defeat to
Boulogne
Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. Boulogne lies on the ...
in the
Coupe de la Ligue
The Coupe de la Ligue (), known outside France as the French League Cup, was a Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in Football in France, French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was est ...
. He made his league debut a week later playing the entire match in a 1–0 win over
Nîmes
Nîmes ( , ; oc, Nimes ; Latin: ''Nemausus'') is the prefecture of the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. Located between the Mediterranean Sea and Cévennes, the commune of Nîmes has an estimated population of 148,5 ...
. A month later, Giroud scored his first goal for the club converting the opener in a league match against
Lens
A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...
. In the second half, he scored another goal to cap a 3–1 win. Two weeks later, Giroud scored his third goal for the club in a victory over
Ajaccio
Ajaccio (, , ; French: ; it, Aiaccio or ; co, Aiacciu , locally: ; la, Adiacium) is a French commune, prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud, and head office of the ''Collectivité territoriale de Corse'' (capital city of Corsica). ...
.
In the
Coupe de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...
, Giroud scored five goals in two matches. In the eighth round of the competition, he scored the team's only goal in a 1–0 win over semi-professional club
Pacy Vallée-d'Eure. In the ensuing round against
Réunion
Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...
ais club
Jeanne d'Arc
Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronati ...
, Giroud scored four goals in a 7–1 win.
Tours would later be eliminated in the next round by
Lorient
Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France.
History
Prehistory and classical antiquity
Beginn ...
. After his four-goal display against Jeanne d'Arc, Giroud followed up the performance by scoring goals in back-to-back league matches against
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...
and
Metz
Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand E ...
. After a double against Nîmes on 20 February 2009, the striker suffered an injury, which forced him to miss three league matches. After making two substitute appearances on his return, in his first start since the injury on 3 April against
Angers
Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the prov ...
, Giroud scored the team's opening goal in a 3–1 win. Giroud later re-aggravated the previous injury in training, which led to him missing the entire month of April as Tours were contesting a promotion battle with several clubs. Despite losing Giroud, the club went unbeaten in the four league matches he missed. On his return against Boulogne on 8 May, Giroud scored his final goal of the season in a victory. In Tours' final three league matches of the campaign, the club failed to achieve a win, which resulted in the club failing to earn promotion to
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
. Giroud finished the season with 27 total appearances and 14 goals.
In the
2009–10 season, Giroud was promoted to the lead striker role following the departure of
Tenema N'Diaye
Tenema N'Diaye (born 13 February 1981) is a Malian former professional footballer who played as a striker.
Club career
N'Diaye was born in Bamako. In August 2010, he joined FC Metz
Football Club de Metz, commonly referred to as FC Metz ...
to
Nantes
Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
. The promotion immediately paid off as Giroud scored two goals in the team's opening match of the season; a 2–1 win over
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...
in the
Coupe de la Ligue
The Coupe de la Ligue (), known outside France as the French League Cup, was a Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in Football in France, French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was est ...
. On 18 August 2009, he scored his first league goal against the same opposition in another win. Following another league goal in a win over
Guingamp
Guingamp (; ) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France. With a population of 6,895 as of 2017, Guingamp is one of the smallest towns in Europe to have a top-tier professional football team: En Avant Guinga ...
, on 18 September, Giroud scored all four of Tours' goals in a 4–2 win over Arles-Avignon. It was his second career four-goal match at the professional level and his third overall having had one at amateur level while playing with the Grenoble reserve team.
In the team's next 15 matches in all competitions, Giroud remained on form scoring ten goals. During that span, the striker scored in consecutive matches on three occasions. Giroud finished the fall campaign with 16 goals, 13 of which came in league play.
On 26 January 2010, it was reported that Ligue 1 club
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...
had signed Giroud from Tours on a three and a half-year deal.
The transfer fee was priced at €2 million and it was also announced that Montpellier would loan Giroud back to Tours until the end of the 2009–10 season.
The striker admitted the move to Montpellier would benefit him the most stating "I feel that here (Montpellier), the coach and staff will be able to help me make real progress. The environment is ideal, the training center is good, the group is healthy, and there's a beautiful stadium with an audience that responds to this". Following the transfer, Giroud went three weeks without scoring a goal before converting one on 19 February 2010 in a win over Arles-Avignon. Two weeks later, he scored the team's only goal in a 2–1 defeat to Nantes. On 19 March, Giroud scored two goals in a shutout win against
Châteauroux
Châteauroux (; ; oc, Chasteurós) is the capital city of the French department of Indre, central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges. Its residents are called ''Castelroussins'' () in French.
Climate
Ch ...
. A week later, he scored in another shutout victory over
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
. After the goal against Strasbourg, Giroud went seven matches without scoring before netting on the final matchday of the season against Nîmes. He finished the season with 42 appearances and 24 goals. Giroud scored 21 in the league and was named the league's top goalscorer. After the season, he was named the
National Union of Professional Footballers
The Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionels (UNFP; English: National Union of Professional Footballers) is the main trade union for professional football players in France. It was founded on 16 November 1961 by Eugène N'Jo Léa and Just Fon ...
(UNFP)
Ligue 2
Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by Balkrishna Industries, is a French professional football league. The league serves as the second division of French football and is one of two divisions ...
Player of the Year
Several sports leagues honour their best player with an award called Player of the Year (POY) . In the United States, this type of award is usually called a Most Valuable Player award.
Association football
In association football, this award is he ...
. Giroud was also named to the league's
Team of the Year Team of the Year may refer to:
*BBC Sports Personality of the Year Team Award
*Canadian Press Team of the Year Award
*GPA Gaelic Team of the Year
*IRB International Sevens Team of the Year
*IRB International Team of the Year
*J.League Team of the Y ...
.
Montpellier
Giroud officially joined Montpellier on 1 July 2010. He simultaneously made his club and
European
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
debut on 29 July in the first leg of Montpellier's
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
third qualifying round with
Hungarian club
Győri ETO. In the match, Giroud scored his first goal for the club in the first half. Montpellier won the match courtesy of Giroud's goal, but were defeated on aggregate after losing on penalties in the second leg. Giroud made his league debut in the team's first match of the campaign; a 1–0 win over
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
. On 28 August, he scored his first league goal in a 1–0 away win against
Valenciennes
Valenciennes (, also , , ; nl, label=also Dutch, Valencijn; pcd, Valincyinnes or ; la, Valentianae) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France, France.
It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced a s ...
. On 25 September, Giroud scored two goals in a home victory over Arles-Avignon. The double brought his career goal tally to nine against the
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...
-based club. A week later, he scored Montpellier's lone goal in a 3–1 loss to
Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...
. In November 2010, Giroud scored game-winning goals in consecutive weeks against
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...
and
Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...
.
In the
Coupe de la Ligue
The Coupe de la Ligue (), known outside France as the French League Cup, was a Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in Football in France, French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was est ...
, Montpellier surprisingly reached
the final of the competition. In the semi-finals against
Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...
, Giroud played the entire match, which went into
extra time
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played onl ...
. In the 117th minute, he scored the match-winning goal to send Montpellier to its first major final since the 1993–94 season when the club reached
the final of the Coupe de France. In the 2011 Coupe de la Ligue Final, Montpellier faced Marseille and were defeated 1–0 courtesy of a goal by
Taye Taiwo
Taye Ismaila Taiwo (born 16 April 1985) is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Kakkonen club SalPa.
Having been a ranks of Gabros International and Lobi Stars, Taiwo moved to France by joining Marseille, where he h ...
. Giroud played the entire match. Following his goal against Paris Saint-Germain, Giroud went scoreless for nearly two months before converting both club goals against the same opposition in a 2–2 draw at the
Parc des Princes
Parc des Princes () is an all-seater stadium, all-seater Association football, football stadium in Paris, France, in the south-west of the French capital, inside the 16th arrondissement of Paris, 16th arrondissement, near the Stade Jean-Bouin ...
. Towards the end of the league season, Giroud scored goals against title contenders Marseille and
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
. However, Montpellier lost both matches. After finishing the season as the club's top scorer, on 31 May 2011, Giroud signed a contract extension with Montpellier until 2014.
Giroud began the
2011–12 campaign on form scoring in the team's first two league matches of the season against
Auxerre
Auxerre ( , ) is the capital of the Yonne department and the fourth-largest city in Burgundy. Auxerre's population today is about 35,000; the urban area (''aire d'attraction'') comprises roughly 113,000 inhabitants. Residents of Auxerre are r ...
and the
defending champions Lille. Montpellier won both matches. After scoring a double in a 2–2 draw with
Brest
Brest may refer to:
Places
*Brest, Belarus
**Brest Region
**Brest Airport
**Brest Fortress
* Brest, Kyustendil Province, Bulgaria
* Břest, Czech Republic
*Brest, France
** Arrondissement of Brest
**Brest Bretagne Airport
** Château de Brest
*Br ...
, French newspaper ''
Le Parisien
''Le Parisien'' (; French for "The Parisian") is a French daily newspaper covering both international and national news, and local news of Paris and its suburbs. It is owned by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, better known as LVMH.
Histor ...
'' affectionately dubbed him ''le buteur de charme'' (''the charm striker'').
The nickname paid tribute to his goalscoring ability, as well as personality and looks and was, subsequently, used by several other media outlets in France to describe the player.
In the team's next 18 matches in all competitions, Giroud lived up to the nickname by scoring 13 goals. The impressive output consisted of
hat-tricks
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
against
Dijon
Dijon (, , ) (dated)
* it, Digione
* la, Diviō or
* lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920.
The earlies ...
and
Sochaux
Sochaux () is a commune in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France.
Geography
Sochaux lies east of Montbéliard, and southeast of Paris.
Population
Inhabitants are known as ''Sochaliens''.
Economy
Soc ...
, match-winning goals against
Nancy, Lyon, and Nice, and a goal each in the 2011–12 Coupe de la Ligue, Coupe de la Ligue and 2011–12 Coupe de France, Coupe de France.
As a result of Giroud's performance and the team as a whole, Montpellier topped the league table in November 2011. In January 2012, Giroud was linked with a transfer to several clubs. Montpellier's owner Louis Nicollin responded to the rumours on French radio station ''RTL (French radio), RTL'' and surprised many by deeming one club "not big enough" for Giroud, while also declaring that the striker would cost "at least €50 or €60 million". At the start of the second half of the campaign, Giroud scored in back-to-back league matches against Lyon and
Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...
. Two weeks later against
Ajaccio
Ajaccio (, , ; French: ; it, Aiaccio or ; co, Aiacciu , locally: ; la, Adiacium) is a French commune, prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud, and head office of the ''Collectivité territoriale de Corse'' (capital city of Corsica). ...
, he assisted on Montpellier's second goal and scored the team's final goal in a 3–0 win. On 24 March 2012, Giroud scored in the 1–0 win over AS Saint-Étienne, Saint-Étienne. The victory placed Montpellier at the top of the table and the club remained there for the rest of the campaign capturing its first league title in club history after beating
Auxerre
Auxerre ( , ) is the capital of the Yonne department and the fourth-largest city in Burgundy. Auxerre's population today is about 35,000; the urban area (''aire d'attraction'') comprises roughly 113,000 inhabitants. Residents of Auxerre are r ...
2–1 on the final day of the season. Giroud finished the season with a league-leading 21 goals and 9 assists. Despite being tied on goals with Paris Saint-Germain attacker Nenê (footballer born 1981), Nenê, he was named the league's top scorer by the Ligue de Football Professionnel due to finishing with more goals in open play.
Arsenal
2012–13: Debut season
On 26 June 2012, Arsenal won the race to sign Giroud on a long-term contract for a fee believed to be around £9.6 million (€12.4 million). He was given the number 12 shirt. He made his debut on 18 August as a substitute for fellow debutant Lukas Podolski in a goalless home draw against Sunderland A.F.C., Sunderland in the Premier League and scored his first goal for Arsenal on 26 September, in a 6–1 win against Coventry City F.C., Coventry City in the Football League Cup, League Cup. His first Premier League goal came on 6 October, with the equaliser in a 3–1 win against West Ham United F.C., West Ham United, in which he also assisted a Theo Walcott goal. On 30 October, he helped Arsenal to a historic comeback in a League Cup tie against Reading F.C., Reading, as Arsenal were 4–0 down before coming back to win the game 7–5 after extra-time, with Giroud scoring Arsenal's second goal. Giroud scored his first UEFA Champions League goal for Arsenal in a 2–2 draw at FC Schalke 04, Schalke 04 on 6 November and four days later he scored twice in a 3–3 draw at home to Fulham F.C., Fulham. Giroud's form earned him a place in the Premier League team of the week.
On 17 November, Giroud scored the third goal in Arsenal's 5–2 North London derby, derby win over Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham. Four days later, Giroud assisted both Jack Wilshere's and Lukas Podolski's goals in Arsenal's 2–0 victory over former club Montpellier, which allowed Arsenal to qualify for the knockout stages of the tournament.
The Arsenal fans have warmed to Giroud as he has started to pick up form after a shaky start; a run of goals in consecutive games has led to a chant mimicking The Beatles' "Hey Jude" of 'Na na na, Na na naaaa, Na na naaaa, Giroud' echoing around the Emirates Stadium. On 29 December 2012, Giroud scored a brace and hit the crossbar after coming on as a substitute for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in the 80th minute, as Arsenal beat Newcastle United F.C., Newcastle United 7–3 at the Emirates Stadium.
On 23 January, Giroud scored a brace as Arsenal beat West Ham 5–1, and did the same in a Man of the Match performance against Brighton & Hove Albion F.C., Brighton & Hove Albion in the fourth round of the FA Cup three days later. On 30 January, Giroud scored as Arsenal fought back to earn a 2–2 draw, from 2–0 down at home to Liverpool F.C., Liverpool. Giroud scored a header from a Wilshere free kick, and provided an assist for Theo Walcott.
For January, Giroud was awarded with the Arsenal Fan's Player of the Month Award. On 13 April 2013, Giroud played a big part of Arsenal's 3–1 win against Norwich City F.C., Norwich City at home, winning a penalty that led to the equalizer in the 85th minute. He then sent Arsenal ahead himself two minutes later and set up for Lukas Podolski. This victory sent Arsenal to third in the table, climbing past London-rivals Chelsea F.C., Chelsea and Tottenham. He received his first red card for Arsenal against Fulham, which meant he would miss three of Arsenal's last four games of the season. His appeal was rejected by the Football Association. Giroud finished the season with 17 goals and 11 assists in 47 appearances.
2013–15: Ending the trophy drought
Giroud scored in the opening game of the Premier League season against Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa, a 3–1 loss for Arsenal. His scored the only goal in the North London derby against Tottenham Hotspur on 1 September. On 26 October, Giroud scored the second goal in a 2–0 win at Crystal Palace, keeping Arsenal at the top of the Premier League, and almost a month later scored a double against Southampton F.C., Southampton, following a mistake from the Saints' goalkeeper Artur Boruc, and then he converted a penalty in a 2–0 win. Giroud's last goal of 2013, and Arsenal's last of the year, came against Newcastle United F.C., Newcastle United. His flicked header from Theo Walcott, Theo Walcott's free kick gave Arsenal a narrow 1–0 win and placed them at the top of the table going into 2014. He then scored on his return to the first team against Aston Villa after an ankle injury, a match that ended 2–1 in Arsenal's favour.
On 8 March 2014, Giroud scored twice against Everton F.C., Everton in the FA Cup quarter-final, helping Arsenal to a 4–1 win. On 12 April, Giroud scored one of the penalties in the shootout against Wigan Athletic to send Arsenal to the final of the 2013–14 FA Cup, FA Cup at Wembley Stadium. On 17 May, Giroud started in the 2014 FA Cup Final as Arsenal beat Hull City A.F.C., Hull City 3–2 at Wembley Stadium and assisted Aaron Ramsey's cup-winning goal.
Giroud started the season by scoring the third goal in
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
3–0 win against Manchester City F.C., Manchester City in the 2014 FA Community Shield, a 25-yard shot which dipped over goalkeeper Willy Caballero, thus winning Giroud's second title for Arsenal. Despite only coming on as a half-time substitute, he was named Man of the match. Shortly after scoring the equaliser in a 2–2 draw against Everton F.C, Everton on 22 August, he broke his left tibia and was ruled out for four months.
On 30 September 2014, his 28th birthday, Giroud signed a new contract at Arsenal, keeping him at the club until 2018 and increasing his weekly wage to £80,000. Giroud returned to action quicker than expected, replacing Aaron Ramsey for the last 13 minutes of a 1–2 home defeat against Manchester United on 22 November and scoring Arsenal's consolation goal in added time. Later, he scored twice in a 4–1 home victory against Newcastle United F.C., Newcastle United on 13 December. Thirteen days later, he was sent off in Arsenal's 2–1 win over Queens Park Rangers F.C., Queens Park Rangers for a headbutt on Nedum Onuoha after being pushed by the QPR defender. He later returned from his three-game suspension to feature in a 3–0 victory at home against Stoke City F.C., Stoke City on 11 January. On 18 January, he scored the second goal in a 2–0 victory against Manchester City F.C., Manchester City, giving the gunners their first victory at the City of Manchester Stadium since 2010. Giroud carried on his Premier League form by opening the scoring and by setting up Mesut Özil for the second goal of the match as Arsenal beat Aston Villa 5–0.
On 15 February, he netted two goals in the space of three minutes as Arsenal defeated Middlesbrough F.C., Middlesbrough 2–0 to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. His first goal concluded a move in which every Arsenal player touched the ball without Middlesbrough taking possession.
On 25 February, Giroud was substituted 60 minutes into Arsenal's 3–1 2014–15 UEFA Champions League knockout stage, Champions League round of 16 loss to AS Monaco FC, AS Monaco after missing several good chances for his club. Four days later, on 1 March, he scored Arsenal's opening goal in a 2–0 Premier League defeat of Everton. Giroud kept up his fine form by netting one goals each against Queens Park Rangers, West Ham United and two against Newcastle United in the Premier League
while also scoring against AS Monaco FC, Monaco in the Champions League. Giroud was announced as the Premier League Player of the Month for March.
On 4 April, Giroud scored the fourth goal for his team in a 4–1 win over Liverpool.
On 30 May, Giroud scored Arsenal's fourth goal after appearing as a substitute in the team's 4–0 2015 FA Cup Final victory over Aston Villa at Wembley Stadium.
2015–18: Premier League runner-up, third FA Cup
Giroud scored Arsenal's first goal of the season, a Bicycle kick, sideways scissor kick from an Özil assist at Crystal Palace F.C., Crystal Palace in a 2–1 loss. On 20 October 2015, he came off the bench to score the first goal in a 2–0 win against FC Bayern Munich, Bayern Munich in the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League group stage. On 9 December, he scored his first competitive Arsenal hat-trick in a 3–0 away victory at Olympiacos F.C., Olympiacos helping the Gunners, who needed a two-goal win, make the last-16 of the Champions League. Giroud scored the first goal in a 2–0 victory over Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa four days later, becoming only the seventh Arsenal player to reach 50 Premier League goals for the club. On 8 March, Giroud ended a 12-match scoreless run, with a brace in a 4–0 away victory over Hull City A.F.C., Hull City in a 2015–16 FA Cup, FA Cup replay.
On 8 May 2016, Giroud scored in a 2–2 against Manchester City at the City of Manchester Stadium to end a run of 15 Premier League matches without a goal. He also assisted the team's second goal, scored by Alexis Sánchez. A week later, in the team's final match of the season, Giroud scored a hat-trick against Aston Villa to end 2015–16 Arsenal F.C. season, 2015–16 with 16 goals in the 2015–16 Premier League, Premier League and 24 in all competitions.
Giroud made only three appearances in Arsenal's first nine matches of the 2016–17 Premier League, all of them coming on as a substitute. On 29 October 2016, after coming onto the pitch as a substitute in the 69th minute on matchday 10 of the Premier League, Giroud scored two goals with his first two touches in Arsenal's 4–1 away win against Sunderland A.F.C., Sunderland. On 19 November, Giroud scored an 89th-minute equalising goal after appearing as a substitute in a 1–1 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford. On 26 December, he scored in a 1–0 home defeat of West Bromwich Albion F.C., West Bromwich Albion on his first Premier League start of the season. On 1 January 2017, Giroud scored with a backheeled "scorpion kick" volley in a 2–0 win against Crystal Palace F.C., Crystal Palace, a goal described by Arsène Wenger as the greatest he had seen at the Emirates Stadium. The goal later earned him the FIFA Puskás Award for the goal of the year.
On 12 January 2017, Giroud, alongside teammates Francis Coquelin and Laurent Koscielny signed a new long-term contract with Arsenal. During the 2017 FA Cup Final against Chelsea at Wembley, Giroud came on in the 78th minute with the score 1–1, and a minute later he delivered an assist for Aaron Ramsey to score the winning goal which saw Arsenal lift the Cup for a record-breaking thirteenth time.
On 28 September 2017, during Arsenal's UEFA Europa League, Europa League group game away to FC BATE Borisov, BATE Borisov, Giroud scored his 100th goal for the club in a 4–2 victory.
Chelsea
On 31 January 2018, Giroud signed an 18-month contract with Chelsea F.C., Chelsea for an undisclosed fee.
2018–21: Fourth FA Cup, European victories
He made his debut five days later in a Premier League away game at Watford F.C., Watford, where he came on in the 64th minute replacing Pedro (footballer, born July 1987), Pedro. However, the result was a 4–1 loss. On 12 February, Giroud started his first game for the club in which he provided an assist for Eden Hazard in a 3–0 home win against West Bromwich Albion F.C., West Bromwich Albion. He scored his first goal in the FA Cup fifth round against Hull City A.F.C., Hull City in the 4–0 home win. On 14 April, Giroud came off the bench to score twice as Chelsea recovered from a 2–0 deficit to beat Southampton FC, Southampton 3–2 at St Mary's Stadium. It was his first time scoring in the Premier League with his new club.
On 8 November, Giroud registered his first goal of the season away to BATE Borisov in matchday four of the 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, Europa League group stage. It was the only goal of the match, sending Chelsea through to the knockout stages of the tournament. In his next outing, he scored his first Premier League goal of the season in a 3–1 away loss to Tottenham Hotspur on 24 November. Giroud then made it four goals in three games, bagging a brace at home to P.A.O.K., PAOK in matchday five of the Europa League. Chelsea won the match 4–0. On his 500th career appearance, Giroud scored a free kick to equalise and preserve Chelsea's unbeaten Europa League group stage campaign. The match against MOL Vidi FC, Vidi at MOL Aréna Sóstó finished 2–2. Giroud scored his first Chelsea hat trick on 14 March in a 5–0 (8–0 aggregate) win over Dynamo Kyiv in the second leg of the Europa League round of 16 tie at NSC Olimpiyskiy. The following month, he became the first Chelsea player to score 10 goals in a single European campaign when he scored in a 4–3 semi-final second-leg win over SK Slavia Prague, Slavia Prague. In May 2019, he signed a new contract with Chelsea through the 2019–20 season. On 29 May, he scored in Chelsea's 4–1 win over his former club Arsenal in the 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, Europa League 2019 UEFA Europa League Final, final; during the match, he also set-up Hazard's second goal. With 11 goals in the competition, he set a new record for most goals by a French player in a single European season, breaking the previous record held jointly by Nestor Combin (achieved during the 1963–64 European Cup Winners' Cup) and Just Fontaine (achieved during the 1958–59 European Cup).
On 14 August 2019, Giroud scored his first goal of the season against Liverpool in the 2019 UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup. Liverpool went on to win the match on penalties (5–4) after a 2–2 scoreline. His first 2019–20 Premier League, Premier League goal came on 22 February 2020 against Tottenham in a 2–1 home win. On 20 May 2020, Giroud signed a new one-year contract with Chelsea. On 19 July 2020, he scored a goal and helped Chelsea to reach their 14th 2019–20 FA Cup, FA Cup final after beating Manchester United 3–1 in the semi-final. Giroud finished the league season with a goal in Chelsea's 2–0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C., Wolves on 26 July, a result which secured Chelsea a place in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League. The goal was also his fifth goal in six matches and sixth overall since the restart of football following the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 23 September 2020, Giroud made his first appearance in 2020–21 Chelsea F.C. season, 2020–21 season from the bench and scored his first goal of the season against Barnsley F.C., Barnsley in the third round of the EFL Cup, which ended in a 6–0 win at home. He scored the winning goal for Chelsea in stoppage time against Stade Rennais F.C., Rennes in the Champions League on 24 November; the victory secured Chelsea's progression to the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League#Round of 16, knockout phase of the competition. On 2 December, Giroud became the oldest player in Champions League history to score a List of UEFA Champions League hat-tricks, hat-trick when he scored all four goals in a 4–0 win at Sevilla FC, Sevilla. He also became the oldest player to achieve the feat in the European Cup since Real Madrid CF, Real Madrid's Ferenc Puskás in September 1965 (38y 173d vs. Feyenoord). On 5 December, Giroud marked his first league start of the season with his fifth goal against Leeds United F.C., Leeds United and landed himself in the Premier League's record books after continuing his remarkable goalscoring form. He became the oldest player to ever score in six successive Premier League starts at the age of 34 years and 63 days. He also became the first Chelsea player to score in six consecutive Premier League starts for the club since Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in October 2001. On 8 December, Giroud marked his 100th appearance for Chelsea in a 1–1 home draw against FC Krasnodar, Krasnodar in the Champions League final 2020–21 UEFA Champions League group stage, group stage match.
On 15 February 2021, Giroud became the 17th player in Premier League history to make 100 substitute appearances when he replaced an injured Tammy Abraham in the first half of Chelsea's match against Newcastle; Giroud would go on to open the scoring in an eventual 2–0 win. On 23 February, he executed a bicycle kick that scored the only goal in a 1–0 win over Atlético Madrid in the Champions League round of 16.
Giroud was an unused substitute as Chelsea defeated Manchester City 1–0 in the 2021 UEFA Champions League Final on 29 May. Although Giroud's contract was due to expire at the end of season, with him having numerous offers to join as a free agent, on 4 June 2021, however, Chelsea announced that a one-year contract extension clause was unilaterally triggered earlier in April, thus keeping the player at the club for the upcoming season.
AC Milan
2021–22: Serie A champion
On 17 July 2021,
AC Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seasons ...
announced the transfer of Giroud from Chelsea permanently on a two-year contract. On 29 August, Giroud scored his first goals for Milan, a brace, in a 4–1 win against Cagliari Calcio, Cagliari.
On 16 October, when his side was trailing by 2–0, he scored the opener for Milan to help his team achieve a comeback 3–2 win against Hellas Verona F.C., Hellas Verona. On 26 October, he scored the only goal in Milan's 1–0 win against Torino.
On 6 January 2022, he scored the opener against Roma, and helped his teammate Junior Messias, Messias scoring the second after Giroud snatched the ball from Roma defense and hit the post, in an eventual 3–1 win.
On 5 February, Giroud scored a brace to help his team win 1–2 against Inter Milan, Inter in Derby della Madonnina, becoming the first French player ever to score a brace or more in Serie A against Inter.
Four days later, Giroud scored another brace aganist S.S. Lazio, Lazio in Coppa Italia as Milan thrashed the former 4–0, progressing to the semi-final of the competition.
On 6 March in Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Stadio Diego Maradona, although suffering from a deep cut in his left shin, Giroud scored the only goal in an away win against S.S.C. Napoli, Napoli, helping his team to climb to the top of Serie A table.
It was Giroud 11th goal this season in all competitions (in 27 appearances), equalling his total tally from the whole of last season for Chelsea (31 matches).
On 19 March, he provided his 4th assist this season, setting up Ismaël Bennacer, Bennacer goal against Cagliari in a 1–0 win.
On 24 April, in Stadio Olimpico, he scored the equalizer against Lazio, helping his team to achieve a 2–1 comeback. On 22 May, he scored a brace in a 3–0 away win over U.S. Sassuolo Calcio, Sassuolo, to secure the
2021–22 Serie A
The 2021–22 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 120th season of top-tier Italian football, the 90th in a round-robin tournament, and the 12th since its organization under an own league committee, the Lega Serie ...
title for AC Milan.
2022–23
He scored his first goal of the season against Bologna F.C. 1909, Bologna on 27 August, a volley in a 2–0 win.
On 3 September, against Inter, he scored and assisted a goal in a 3–2 win.
One week later he scored the winner in a 2–1 away win against U.C. Sampdoria, Sampdoria.
On 14 September he scored against GNK Dinamo Zagreb, Dinamo Zagreb in the second group stage match of the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League, Champions League.
International career
Prior to representing the France national football team, senior national team, Giroud did not earn any caps with the France national youth football team, national youth teams. In 2001, he was called up to the France national under-16 football team, under-16 team alongside the likes of Yoann Gourcuff, Yohan Cabaye, and Sylvain Marveaux by coach Pierre Mankowski to participate in a training camp held at the INF Clairefontaine, Clairefontaine academy. After the camp, Giroud was not called up for the duration of the 2001–02 under-16 campaign.
On 3 November 2011, in an effort to reward Giroud for his performances domestically with Montpellier, national team coach Laurent Blanc named the striker in the squad to play in Exhibition match, friendly matches against the United States men's national soccer team, United States and Belgium national football team, Belgium on 11 and 15 November 2011, respectively. Giroud described the call up as "a childhood dream come true", while also stating it is "immensely satisfying and a privilege" to represent the national team. He made his international debut in the match against the United States appearing as a substitute. France won the match 1–0. Against Belgium, Giroud earned another cap appearing as a substitute as the match ended 0–0. On 29 February 2012, Giroud scored his first career international goal in a 2–1 friendly victory over Germany national football team, Germany. Three months later, he was named to the squad to participate in UEFA Euro 2012. Two days prior to the announcement of the final squad, Giroud assisted on two goals in France's 3–2 friendly comeback win over Iceland national football team, Iceland.
On 16 October 2012, Giroud equalised for France in its 1–1 draw against Spain national football team, Spain in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification, 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier. Coming on as a substitute in the 88th minute, he scored a headed goal from a Franck Ribéry cross in the fourth minute of injury time. Due to his goal against Spain and good form with
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
, Giroud, along with Arsenal teammate Laurent Koscielny, received a call for France's tie against Italy national football team, Italy on 14 November. In the match, Giroud had a few chances, but then was substituted with five other players in the second half as France came back from behind to win the match 2–1. Giroud scored twice and was named man of the match in a 6–0 win over Australia national association football team, Australia on 11 October 2013 in an international friendly.
On 13 May 2014, Giroud was named in Didier Deschamps' squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. After appearing as a second-half substitute in France's opening match against Honduras national football team, Honduras, Giroud was named in the starting line-up for the team's second group fixture against Switzerland national football team, Switzerland. He scored the opening goal of the match in the 17th minute to record his first FIFA World Cup goal and the 100th at the tournament in the French national team's history, as ''Les Bleus'' ran out 5–2 winners to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup knockout stage, knockout stage.
In the UEFA Euro 2016 Group A, opening match of Euro 2016 on 10 June 2016, France national football team, France defeated Romania national football team, Romania 2–1. Giroud earned his 50th France cap by being in the starting line-up of that match and played every minute of it; he scored the opening goal by heading Dimitri Payet's cross into the goal in the 57th minute. He scored a brace in a 5–2 win against Iceland national football team, Iceland in the UEFA Euro 2016 knockout phase#France vs Iceland, Quarter-finals. Following France's defeat to Portugal national football team, Portugal in the UEFA Euro 2016 Final, final of the tournament, Giroud finished the competition as the joint second-highest scorer, with 3 goals and 2 assists, and was awarded the
Bronze Boot
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids suc ...
.
In a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group A, 2018 World Cup qualifier against Luxembourg national football team, Luxembourg in March 2017, which France won 3–1, Giroud scored twice, taking his total to 23 and moving him into his country's top ten goalscorers of all time.
On 2 June 2017, Giroud scored a hat-trick at Roazhon Park for France in a friendly against Paraguay which finished 5–0 to the hosts. In that game, he also become the first player to score a hat-trick for Les Bleus in 17 years.
On 17 May 2018, he was called up to the 23-man French national football team, French squad for the
2018 FIFA World Cup
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national Association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awa ...
in Russia. On 28 May 2018, Giroud scored his 31st international goal for France during a home game against Ireland, equalling Zinedine Zidane's record, and becoming the fourth highest goal scorer of all time for the country. Giroud's inclusion in the team as a big man towering over opposing defenders was designed to create more freedom for Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappé to generate offensive chances. Giroud played in all seven matches, and though he failed to register a shot on net on 13 shots, his physical presence and link-up play was credited with Griezmann and Mbappé each scoring four goals. On 30 June 2018, Giroud set up Mbappé's second goal in a 2018 FIFA World Cup knockout stage#France vs Argentina, 4–3 win over Argentina national football team, Argentina. In the 2018 FIFA World Cup Final, final of the tournament on 15 July, France defeated Croatia national football team, Croatia 4–2 to win their second FIFA World Cup title.
In March 2019, Giroud scored goals in two UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying, UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers against Moldova national football team, Moldova and Iceland national football team, Iceland, taking his tally to 35 for France. In doing so, he surpassed David Trezeguet to become the nation's third-highest goalscorer of all-time, behind only Thierry Henry and Michel Platini. On 8 September 2020, Giroud scored his 40th goal for the France national football team, French national team, in a 4–2 UEFA Nations League victory against Croatia national football team, Croatia.
On 7 October 2020, Giroud played his 100th match for France, where he also scored twice in a 7–1 win against Ukraine national football team, Ukraine, giving him 42 goals in his international career to surpass Platini's total and rank second for France.
On 8 June 2021, he scored twice in a warm-up friendly for the Euro 2020 against Bulgaria national football team, Bulgaria, reaching his tally up to 46 goals, thus being only 5 down to French national team top goalscorer Thierry Henry.
Giroud was called up to the French squad for the
2022 FIFA World Cup
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is an international association football, football tournament contested by the men's national teams of FIFA's member associations. The 22nd FIFA World Cup is taking place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022 ...
in Qatar; he started as the team's lone striker in their opening match against Australia on 22 November, scoring two goals and equalling Thierry Henry's 51-goal record for France. He broke the record and became the national team top scorer after scoring a goal against Poland national football team, Poland at the round of 16 on 4 December.
On 10 December, he scored the winning goal against England, helping France to the Semi Finals.
Style of play
Giroud is capable of playing in several offensive positions, but usually plays as a
striker or as a centre-forward; he has also occasionally been used as a second striker, or even as a false 9. A hard-working striker, he is known in particular for his reliable goal scoring rate, size, physical strength, heading accuracy, powerful shot, ability to hold up the ball with his back to goal, and link-up play, or create space for his teammates with his movement off the ball.
He is also associated with making runs to the front post that outwit defenders. Due to his playing style and penchant for scoring goals after coming off the bench, he has been described as a "target man",
and as a "super sub" in the media. He has also been described by pundits as one of the most underrated strikers in the world.
Outside football
Personal life
Giroud has an older brother, Romain, who was also a footballer, having played at the
Auxerre
Auxerre ( , ) is the capital of the Yonne department and the fourth-largest city in Burgundy. Auxerre's population today is about 35,000; the urban area (''aire d'attraction'') comprises roughly 113,000 inhabitants. Residents of Auxerre are r ...
academy and having represented France at France national under-15 football team, under-15 and France national under-17 football team, under-17 level, however he dropped a potential professional career to study and become a nutritionist.
Giroud has been married to Jennifer since 2011 and have four children together. Giroud is a Evangelicalism, Evangelical Protestant and has a tattoo on his right arm from Psalm 23 in Latin: "Dominus regit me et nihil mihi deerit" ("The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want). He describes himself as a "very believing person [...] I don't cross myself before my games but I do a little prayer".
In February 2014, Giroud reportedly cheated on his wife with model Celia Kay.
After the incident, he issued an apology to his wife but later insisted that he had not committed adultery.
Arsène Wenger, Giroud's manager at Arsenal at the time, did not comment on the matter, saying he wanted to "respect his privacy".
Media
In 2014, he became the face of Hugo Boss's ''Boss Bottled'' men's fragrance. In February 2015 Giroud was voted the 'Hottest Premier League Player'. In an interview with ''GQ'', he cited David Beckham as an inspiration for the way he looks, saying that Beckham's "style is iconic".
Giroud has been sponsored by Puma (brand), Puma since 2009. He together with Antoine Griezmann starred in an advert for the brand of which was released in August 2016. Often using elaborate moves in his goal celebrations, Giroud's ‘Glamour slide’ goal celebration is included in EA Sports' ''FIFA 16''.
On 13 November 2018, :fr:Sony Pictures Releasing France, Sony Pictures France confirmed on Twitter that Giroud had landed a role in the French-dubbed version of ''Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse'' (known as ''Spiderman: New Generation'' in France) as the voice of the Green Goblin. He was joined by Presnel Kimpembe, who took on the role of Scorpion.
Career statistics
Club
International
Honours
Montpellier
*
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
: 2011–12 Ligue 1, 2011–12
Arsenal
*
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
: 2013–14 FA Cup, 2013–14,
[ 2014–15 FA Cup, 2014–15, 2016–17 FA Cup, 2016–17][
*FA Community Shield: 2014 FA Community Shield, 2014, 2015 FA Community Shield, 2015, 2017 FA Community Shield, 2017
Chelsea
*FA Cup: 2017–18 FA Cup, 2017–18; runner-up: 2019–20 FA Cup, 2019–20, 2020–21 FA Cup, 2020–21
*UEFA Champions League: 2020–21 UEFA Champions League, 2020–21
*]UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
: 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, 2018–19
*EFL Cup runner-up: 2018–19 EFL Cup, 2018–19
AC Milan
*Serie A: 2021–22 Serie A, 2021–22
France
*FIFA World Cup: 2018 FIFA World Cup, 2018; runner-up: 2022 FIFA World Cup, 2022
*UEFA European Championship runner-up: UEFA Euro 2016, 2016
Individual
*National Union of Professional Footballers, UNFP Ligue 1 Team of the Year Team of the Year may refer to:
*BBC Sports Personality of the Year Team Award
*Canadian Press Team of the Year Award
*GPA Gaelic Team of the Year
*IRB International Sevens Team of the Year
*IRB International Team of the Year
*J.League Team of the Y ...
: 2011–12 Ligue 1#Annual awards, 2011–12
*Ligue 1 top goalscorer: 2011–12 Ligue 1, 2011–12 (joint- 21 goals)
*Premier League Player of the Month: 2014–15 Premier League#Monthly awards, March 2015
*UNFP Ligue 2
Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by Balkrishna Industries, is a French professional football league. The league serves as the second division of French football and is one of two divisions ...
Player of the Year
Several sports leagues honour their best player with an award called Player of the Year (POY) . In the United States, this type of award is usually called a Most Valuable Player award.
Association football
In association football, this award is he ...
: 2009–10 Ligue 2#Player of the Year, 2009–10
*Ligue 2 top goalscorer: 2009–10 Ligue 2, 2009–10
*UNFP Ligue 2 Team of the Year Team of the Year may refer to:
*BBC Sports Personality of the Year Team Award
*Canadian Press Team of the Year Award
*GPA Gaelic Team of the Year
*IRB International Sevens Team of the Year
*IRB International Team of the Year
*J.League Team of the Y ...
: 2009–10 Ligue 2#Team of the Year, 2009–10
*Ligue 2 UNFP Player of the Month: September 2009, November 2009
*UEFA European Championship Bronze Boot: UEFA Euro 2016#Awards, 2016
*FIFA Puskás Award: FIFA Puskás Award#2017, 2017[
* FIFA World Cup awards#Golden Boot, FIFA World Cup Bronze Boot: 2022 FIFA World Cup#Awards, 2022
*UEFA Europa League top goalscorer: 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, 2018–19
*UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2018–19 UEFA Europa League#Squad of the season, 2018–19
*List of Chelsea F.C. players#Goal of the Year, Chelsea Goal of the Season: 2020–21 Chelsea F.C. season, 2020–21
Orders
*Knight of the Legion of Honour: 2018]
See also
* List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps
* List of men's footballers with 50 or more international goals
References
External links
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*
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Giroud, Olivier
1986 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Chambéry
French footballers
France international footballers
Association football forwards
Grenoble Foot 38 players
FC Istres players
Tours FC players
Montpellier HSC players
Arsenal F.C. players
Chelsea F.C. players
A.C. Milan players
Ligue 2 players
Championnat National players
Ligue 1 players
Premier League players
FA Cup Final players
Serie A players
UEFA Europa League winning players
UEFA Champions League winning players
UEFA Euro 2012 players
2014 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Euro 2016 players
2018 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Euro 2020 players
2022 FIFA World Cup players
FIFA World Cup-winning players
French expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in England
French expatriate sportspeople in England
Expatriate footballers in Italy
French expatriate sportspeople in Italy
FIFA Century Club
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
French people of Italian descent
French Protestants
Footballers from Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes