Valencia to bid for Arsenal striker Giroud?

There are reports surfacing in Spain that Valencia will make a move for their long term target Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud, should their current striker Roberto Soldado complete a move to North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

The talk is probably rubbish to be honest, but it made me think about our options in attack. Giroud is almost certain not to leave this summer, because rarely does a player leave after one season with a club if he has not been a flop. Many would argue and say that Giroud has been a flop for Arsenal because of his failure to score in England until a fair few weeks into the season, whilst many also remember his silly red card against Fulham in which his discipline was questioned, but I actually think he did alright.

Last season, he scored 17 goals and got 10 assists in a staggering 47 appearances in all competitions. On paper this record looks quite poor for a striker, especially when you think he is considered to be Arsenal’s main central striker and someone who should be getting 25 plus goals at least. 17 goals in all competitions, so not even in the Premier League with in fact only scoring 11 of those 17 goals in this competition.

That in my opinion is poor. You can say it was his first season in England and so we should be pleased that he reached such heights, some go as far as to point out his record is quite similar to the likes of Didier Drogba and Thierry Henry in their first seasons in England, but I can point out that they were of a young age, Drogba 24, I believe and as for Henry, even younger. Giroud is 26 and so in my opinion if we are to be truly challenging for trophies, we need to sign another striker.

And that striker may be Liverpool’s Luis Suarez, another reason why this rumour has popped up. Giroud for me would be a class act to bring off the bench and make an impact but despite his 6 pre-season goals, I’m still not convinced that the big Frenchman can get 20 league goals next season. Overall we won’t be looking to sell him, and so if Valencia do make an offer, it will more than likely be turned down straight away but my question is, is he really good enough to lead the Arsenal attack?