by Fotbulnary
Football is laced with different concepts that defines how certain managers approach team building and tactics. While these varies according to beliefs and awareness of prevailing circumstances like availability of transfer funds and whether the players be sought are available for transfer. These set of rules if they can be called that are prevalent in virtually all football clubs.
While what might amount to a concept in respect of player quality might differ according to how each person perceives whether such a player is good enough for that team. When it comes to how good a player is, such judgment is always subjective and seldom would you find a common ground in such a situation. No other player defines such a position at the moment than Arsenal and French striker Oliver Giroud. The 29 year old has strongly divided opinion at the London club since he was signed in the summer of 2012.
On this premise, the concept of Giroudology could be taken to mean a player that is seen as good, but not good enough to shoot a club to the pinnacle of sustained success.
The short comings of Oliver Giroud would have been an after thought when his debate props up if he was a consistent goal scorer. When the chances that come his way and those he scores are considered. That is where the problem lies with a player that is yet to hit twenty league goals in four seasons at the club, and during that time, he has been the first choice striker.
As suggested earlier, his short comings would have been overlooked if he was a regular goal scorer. These short comings are very obvious. He is a player that lacks pace. And he is not one that moves to open up space as a result of that lack of pace. By this, it is little wonder that his best attributes remains to bring other players into play either flicking the ball, or holding the ball up. His inability to conjure up something special by scoring individual goals is largely due to his lack of pace, he is more a team player that seeks to bring other players into play rather that going for goal. His lumbering figure means he is unable to beat players for pace or move away from players when he is one-on-one.
His career at Arsenal has be one where he scores in bursts. He can go months without scoring, and vice versa. This season, he has not scored a league goal since January, that is nearly three months.
The question is will a first choice striker is any of the top clubs across Europe go that long without scoring a goal? Though, the French international continues to divide opinions, it is clear that he is really not of the top, top quality that Arsene Wenger harps about.
It was last season that Thierry Henry commented that Arsenal cannot win the title without Oliver Giroud, that comment came after he missed several chances in the 3-1 defeat to Monaco in the Champions League. And so far, he has not done anything to turn around that assertion made by his French compatriot.
Oliver Giroud's recent relegation to the bench in the last couple of weeks, with Danny Welbeck now the first choice, means that Arsenal have moved from playing one paced football. With the addition of Alex Iwobi and Mohammed Elneny to the first eleven, it means that Arsenal now have a collection of players that can pass and move at the same time. With the added pace in the final third, Arsene Wenger's side are no longer as predictable as they used to when Oliver Giroud leads the line. The French striker is one that is ease to close down by opposition defenders.
Whatever the opinion that those of Arsenal persuasion have over Oliver Giroud as a striker, what is clear is that his short comings plus the fact that he is not prolific, means he would continue to be a person that divides opinion.
Football is laced with different concepts that defines how certain managers approach team building and tactics. While these varies according to beliefs and awareness of prevailing circumstances like availability of transfer funds and whether the players be sought are available for transfer. These set of rules if they can be called that are prevalent in virtually all football clubs.
While what might amount to a concept in respect of player quality might differ according to how each person perceives whether such a player is good enough for that team. When it comes to how good a player is, such judgment is always subjective and seldom would you find a common ground in such a situation. No other player defines such a position at the moment than Arsenal and French striker Oliver Giroud. The 29 year old has strongly divided opinion at the London club since he was signed in the summer of 2012.
On this premise, the concept of Giroudology could be taken to mean a player that is seen as good, but not good enough to shoot a club to the pinnacle of sustained success.
The short comings of Oliver Giroud would have been an after thought when his debate props up if he was a consistent goal scorer. When the chances that come his way and those he scores are considered. That is where the problem lies with a player that is yet to hit twenty league goals in four seasons at the club, and during that time, he has been the first choice striker.
As suggested earlier, his short comings would have been overlooked if he was a regular goal scorer. These short comings are very obvious. He is a player that lacks pace. And he is not one that moves to open up space as a result of that lack of pace. By this, it is little wonder that his best attributes remains to bring other players into play either flicking the ball, or holding the ball up. His inability to conjure up something special by scoring individual goals is largely due to his lack of pace, he is more a team player that seeks to bring other players into play rather that going for goal. His lumbering figure means he is unable to beat players for pace or move away from players when he is one-on-one.
His career at Arsenal has be one where he scores in bursts. He can go months without scoring, and vice versa. This season, he has not scored a league goal since January, that is nearly three months.
The question is will a first choice striker is any of the top clubs across Europe go that long without scoring a goal? Though, the French international continues to divide opinions, it is clear that he is really not of the top, top quality that Arsene Wenger harps about.
It was last season that Thierry Henry commented that Arsenal cannot win the title without Oliver Giroud, that comment came after he missed several chances in the 3-1 defeat to Monaco in the Champions League. And so far, he has not done anything to turn around that assertion made by his French compatriot.
Oliver Giroud's recent relegation to the bench in the last couple of weeks, with Danny Welbeck now the first choice, means that Arsenal have moved from playing one paced football. With the addition of Alex Iwobi and Mohammed Elneny to the first eleven, it means that Arsenal now have a collection of players that can pass and move at the same time. With the added pace in the final third, Arsene Wenger's side are no longer as predictable as they used to when Oliver Giroud leads the line. The French striker is one that is ease to close down by opposition defenders.
Whatever the opinion that those of Arsenal persuasion have over Oliver Giroud as a striker, what is clear is that his short comings plus the fact that he is not prolific, means he would continue to be a person that divides opinion.
PREMIER LEAGUE GOALS [OLIVER GIROUD]
2012/2013-----------11
2013/2014-----------16
2014/2015-----------14
2015/2016*----------12
*Season Still Ongoing
OTHER GOALS FOR ARSENAL
EUROPE-------11
FA CUP--------11
LEAGUE CUP--2
C.SHIELD-------1
APPEARANCES: 181
GOALS: 78
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