Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud has revealed that he is frustrated by his lack of goals so far this season.
The Frenchman arrived at Stamford Bridge on January deadline day in a surprising triple transfer merry-go-round. Michy Batshuayi moved to Borussia Dortmund on loan until the end of the season that allowed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to seal a switch to Arsenal. And as a result, knowing that first-team opportunities would be tough to come by at the Emirates, Giroud chose to swap Arsenal for Chelsea in January.
However, things haven’t been a bed of roses for Giroud since making the move to Stamford Bridge. The French striker has scored just once and supplied three assists as Chelsea have witnessed poor results since the turn of the year.
We currently lie out of the top four and have an FA Cup semi-final fixture against Southampton next month, which represents our only opportunity for a trophy this season after the Blues were dumped out of the Champions League by Barcelona earlier this month.
Giroud is disappointed with the way his Chelsea career has started as he has not netted enough goals for us.
“I am happy with my adaptation, the welcome I received, the relationship on the ground with my team-mates,” Giroud was quoted by the Daily Star.
“I should have scored more goals. In terms of statistics, I am very attached to this. I remain stuck at one goal and three assists in five games [Premier League appearances].
“It is sure that it is not enough. But in any case, overall, it’s very encouraging. In time I will do it.”
“You have to be demanding with yourself. I signed to Chelsea to have a new challenge. When you sign like that in January, it’s never easy because you have to acclimatize to your team.
“But I really wanted to be ready right away, even though I was coming back from almost six weeks of injury.
“The coach [Antonio Conte] started me in the second game [a 3-0 win over West Brom] and it made me comfortable.
“It went very well. Then, it is true that I could have done better in some matches. But overall, I repeat, it is very encouraging.”
It is true that Giroud has not enjoyed a blistering start to his Chelsea career since signing for the club in the winter transfer window. However, he should be satisfied with the way things have panned out for him so far. A goal and three assists is not a bad start but Giroud is not satisfied with it, which only shows his character.
After the international break, our next game will be against Tottenham – a decisive game in the hunt for a top-four spot. Let’s hope Giroud scores against Spurs and we win the game!