According to a recent report by Spanish news outlet Sport, European super-club Barcelona are said to be lining up a shock move in an attempt to acquire the services of Chelsea’s World Cup winning French striker Olivier Giroud in January. The report suggests that the Catalan side are keen on finding a replacement for Luis Suarez, who is set to miss most of the remainder of the league season through injury.
The report claims that the Blues have been resigned to the Frenchman’s departure in the winter for a while now, but that the entry of a club like Barcelona into the race for his signature could come as excellent news to Chelsea.
Moreover, the Blaugrana are likely to make attacking additions to the side before the winter window closes, and Giroud does seem like a good bet on paper, especially considering that the Catalan club will not want to stretch their already inflated wage bill.
What Would Olivier Giroud Add To This Barcelona Team?
In the absence of former Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, Olivier Giroud could end up having a rather important role to play for the rest of the season, if this deal takes shape over the coming days. He would act as the target man for a team filled to the brim with top-quality attacking players, and his heading abilities could really come to the fore with the deliveries into the box that he can expect from his superstar teammates.
The Frenchman is a highly experienced campaigner who has consistently got the goals wherever he has gone. He was part of the Chelsea XI that won the Europa League last season, finishing the campaign as the tournament’s leading goalscorer. He had a massive role to play on the way to France’s FIFA World Cup triumph in Russia recently as well.
Why Chelsea Must Look To Offload Giroud In January?
Olivier Giroud still has the quality and attributes to deliver for the biggest teams at the highest levels, and keeping him on the Chelsea bench with no sign of an improvement in the situation in sight would be cruel on the player, to say the least. With a move away looking likelier by the day, moving to a club like Barcelona could be in the veteran striker’s best short-term interests as well.
The Frenchman’s time as a regular first-team player at Stamford Bridge is surely now over, especially considering the dynamic and energetic playing style that Frank Lampard is currently attempting to instil. The 33-year-old doesn’t have a skill-set that complements the way the rest of this Chelsea team play, and would hence be best off looking for a move away from West London at the earliest possible opportunity.
