Olivier Giroud celebrates his goal against Napoli.
Xinhua News Agency via Getty Images
With just over 20 minutes on the clock, Kalidou Koulibaly attempted to snuff out another AC Milan attack, pressing close to his man and trying to prod the ball clear. In doing so, his stud inadvertently caught Olivier Giroud on the ankle, leaving the French striker in agony on the San Siro turf.
As Giroud showed the match official, the challenge had opened up a serious-looking gash in his leg that would eventually require stitches. But that would have to wait. This was a battle for first place in Serie A, and to beat Napoli would require a huge effort from everyone in Rossonero.
The striker got up and battled on, just as his team needed after a difficult spell that had seen them held to draws in each of their three previous outings. This time it had to be different. Giroud was clearly in pain, at times struggling to put weight on his injured ankle, but there was no way he was going to leave his team-mates to fight without him.
“I’ve played with better players than me. It’s about how much you want to grab it, improve and be successful,” Giroud said in an interview with The Times last year. “It’s how much you work for it. Mental strength makes the difference”
That gritty determination would be rewarded after half time. A set piece saw the initial Milan effort blocked, but as Davide Calabria followed up, Giroud had the presence of mind to take a half-step backwards, away from Koulibaly and into just enough space to redirect the ball.
His former Arsenal team-mate David Ospina stood no chance of stopping it, and – as Milan held on to that one-goal advantage until full time – Giroud had once again been the decisive factor in a huge game.
Indeed, it is difficult to understate just how important the 35-year-old has been for the Rossoneri already this season. After netting twice on his debut (a 4-1 win over Cagliari), Giroud has scored;
- A goal against Hellas Verona to spark a comeback from 0-2 down.
- The only goal of the game against Torino.
- The opener in a 3-1 victory over Roma.
- Both goals against Inter after Milan went 0-1 behind in the derby.
- Two goals in a 4-0 Coppa Italia thrashing of Lazio.
- Sunday’s winner against Napoli.
In total, he has weighed in with 11 goals – the same total he managed in all of last season with Chelsea – and two assists. His impact has made the reported €1 million ($1.09m) fee Milan paid for Giroud look like incredible business, but in truth he is simply doing what he’s always done.
After all, his first professional goal was an injury time winner for Grenoble against Le Havre. At Montpellier Giroud netted a Coupe de la Ligue semi-final winner against PSG before finishing the 2011/12 campaign as Ligue 1 top scorer as the club won their first ever title.
At Arsenal he scored winning goals in the derby with Tottenham, won the Puskas Award for a strike against Crystal Palace and got assists to Aaron Ramsey in two FA Cup Final victories.
In 2018 Giroud joined Chelsea, netting 11 goals in the Europa League to help the Blues win the Europa League, his tally including a strike against Arsenal in the final. He grabbed a late winner against Rennes that saw the club advance to the Champions League knockout rounds, before another bicycle kick gave them victory over Atletico Madrid in the last-16.
They would go on to win Europe’s elite competition, before Giroud moved on to Milan where that penchant for scoring in important moments has continued. It has not gone unnoticed by supporters, with fans of the Rossoneri chanting his name long after the final whistle in Naples.
But with Zlatan Ibrahimovic sidelined through injury, the veteran striker has taken on an even more important role for the San Siro giants too, as he explained following the win over Napoli.
“My job here is also to be a big brother for the younger players,” Giroud told DAZN. “We’ve got a lot of quality, but need to talk more, so I know the importance of communication on the pitch and try to encourage it.”
Olivier Giroud is certainly doing that, even if it’s regularly his goals in big games that do the talking.