Everton manager Ronald Koeman reportedly has his sight set on Arsenal forward Olivier Giroud and is lining up a £40 million January deal
According to a report by The Mirror, Everton boss Ronald Koeman is keen on seeing through a £40 million January deal for Arsenal forward Olivier Giroud. It is understood that Koeman is targeting the Frenchman as an attempt to fill the void left behind by Romelu Lukaku.
Giroud was earlier linked with a move to join Everton since first-team football opportunities appeared difficult to come by at Arsenal. West Ham were also supposed to offer him a deal in the summer, but that yielded no result. Thus, Everton are keen on making a move before the player changes his mind.
Olivier Giroud has been an unhappy figure at Arsenal for a while now and has been pretty vocal about wanting to leave due to a significant lack of playing time. The Frenchman is also aware of the fact that he does not have too many good seasons left at the top level, and is thereby keen on clocking as many minutes as he can.
Arsene Wenger has been understandably disappointed with Giroud’s lack of impact in front of goal for the Gunners, and went ahead and signed Alexandre Lacazette from Lyon this summer as a replacement. The deal saw Giroud’s chances get limited further, thus making an exit seem like the ideal option.
The Arsenal forward’s biggest weakness is that he tends to get frustrated when things aren’t going to plan, which often ends up working against him. A lack of pace combined with his positional awareness not being the best are two things that he will have to work on if at all he does join Everton.
At the Merseyside club, the need for a quality forward has only been accentuated by Lukaku’s departure. This can open up several opportunities for Giroud in his quest to find regular first-team action. With the World Cup in Russia next year, joining Everton should seem like an enticing option for Giroud.
At Arsenal, Giroud has majorly used from the bench by Arsene Wenger so far this season and came on as a substitute in the match against Chelsea last week. At Everton though, the player can hope to be part of a more dynamic environment and utilize his skills to truly propel the club forward.
