The best 3 Chelsea strikers of the Roman Abramovich era
By Joseph Joe
3) OLIVIER GIROUD
Olivier Giroud was signed for Chelsea from Arsenal in 2018. He was signed by Antonio Conte to help Alvaro Morata, but Giroud left a lasting legacy at Stamford Bridge.
If Olivier Giroud were quick he’d be the greatest player ever. Better than Ronaldo, better than Messi, than Maradona, Pele, better than the lot of them. Instead he’s just slow and beautiful – but that doesn’t stop him from being effective.
Tall, wide, but with the first touch and skill of a man half his size, Giroud is the consummate target man. People thought his career was ailing when he headed across London to join the Blues from Arsenal, but since then he’s helped Chelsea to Champions League, FA Cup and Europa League wins and bagged a World Cup winner’s medal to boot.
Giroud’s persistence must be applauded: throughout his three-year spell at Chelsea, various managers would relegate the World Cup Winner to the bench in favour of their latest shiny new attacking toy. Nonetheless Giroud could always be counted upon when called into the staring line-up and even when given the dugout as a sub would deliver some iconic moments.
Who could forget that hat-trick in Seville or the moment of unorthodox genius to beat Southampton in the 2018 FA cup semi final? Giroud made 119 appearances for the Club, scoring 39 goals and assisting 14. Including two goals and two assist in Chelsea’s FA cup in 2018. He scored 11 goals and assisted five in 14 games the following season to help bring the Europa League trophy home.
The France international in addition to that scored eight goals in 13 games to secure top four football in 2020 for the Blues’. In his final season, he scored six goals in eight champions league appearances as Chelsea clinched the Trophy for the second time. One would wonder how it would have turned out if Giroud never left.
The Frenchman was a consistent and reliable Goal scorer for the club at a time when the team needed one. Perennially underrated, Giroud is just a really good, stupefyingly-handsome footballer who keeps proving his doubters wrong. It’s safe to say, he was signed as a rival from Arsenal and left as a Chelsea Legend.