Tag: Olivier Giroud

AC Milan captain Davide Calabria said on Wednesday that the departure of Olivier Giroud to Major League Soccer will leave a leadership void at the seven-time European champions.

Veteran French striker Giroud will play his final match for Milan in a post-season friendly against Roma in Perth on Friday in front of an expected crowd of 50,000 at the Optus Stadium.

The 37-year-old is heading to Los Angeles FC next season and will bow out of international football for France after the Euros, which begin in Germany next month.

Giroud was given an emotional farewell by the Milan fans as he signed off from Serie A with a goal in a 3-3 draw with Salernitana on Saturday.

American midfielder Christian Pulisic and winger Rafael Leao are missing from Milan’s tour squad but Giroud has made the long journey to Australia.

“He’s an important leader on-and-off the field … particularly off the field,” Calabria told reporters in Perth on Wednesday.

“He’s supported me a lot. I’ll miss him a lot, but am happy to have these few days together to celebrate his departure.”

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Giroud was a fan favourite at the San Siro and his three-year stint will be largely remembered for scoring key goals in Milan’s 2022 Serie A triumph, the only trophy he won at the Italian club.

Notably, Olivier Giroud is not the only departure at Milan, who are looking for a new coach after coming second in Serie A but failing to mount a serious challenge to fierce rivals Inter Milan.

Stefano Pioli, who had one year remaining on his contract, left at the end of the Serie A campaign after four-and-a-half years in charge.

Reports said he will be replaced by Lille coach Paulo Fonseca, who has also been linked with Marseille.

“I don’t know anything … we’ll see,” Calabria said when asked by AFP if he expected Fonseca to take the reins.

Assistant coach Daniele Bonera will take charge in Perth, but he had been earmarked to coach the under-23s next season.

Roma, who finished sixth in the Serie A, will be without several star players, including on-loan striker Romelu Lukaku who is reportedly set to return to his parent club Chelsea.

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Olivier Giroud, the record goal scorer of France, is to retire from international football after Euro 2024, the World Cup-winning striker told Friday’s edition of L’Equipe.

Giroud, who will turn 38 in September, said it was time for the younger generation to have a chance at the international level.

The former Arsenal, Chelsea and AC Milan striker, who joins MLS outfit Los Angeles FC following the European Championship, has scored 57 goals in 131 international appearances.

He broke Thierry Henry’s national goalscoring record of 51 at the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar where France did not surrender the title they won in 2018 easily, losing to Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina on penalties in the final.

“To be honest, this will be my last tournament with France,” said Giroud, who was first capped in a friendly against the United States in November 2011.

“Obviously I will miss it a lot. But I believe as regards ‘Les Bleus’, it will be game over after Euro.

“It is time to leave the stage to the young.

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“If I triumph in the Euro, I can say that I won everything apart from the Premier League, which is very difficult to win,” he said, adding that the 60-goal milestone was not an obsession for him.

Olivier Giroud, who made his name at Montpellier by inspiring the unfashionable club to the 2012 Ligue 1 title, says he believes he still has enough in his legs to pursue a club career.

“I still think I have two years in me, but for the France team in my opinion it has come to an end,” said Giroud, who was also a member of the team under Didier Deschamps that reached the Euro 2016 final.

“Time is beginning to catch up with me and I have thought about it long and hard.

“Playing every three days is becoming more and more difficult, especially at the international level.

“I am, though, not going to Los Angeles to be a tourist, but I think it is the right moment for me.”

Giroud’s long career has been rewarded not only with the 2018 World Cup winners medal but also the 2019 Champions League with Chelsea, the 2022 Serie A championship with AC Milan and four FA Cup victories (three with Arsenal, one with Chelsea).

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Olivier Giroud confirmed on Monday that he will leave AC Milan at the end of the season to end his long career in Major League Soccer (MLS).

France’s all-time top scorer Giroud is expected to sign for Los Angeles FC, where his former Les Bleus teammate Hugo Lloris already plays, after three years with Serie A giants Milan.

“I’m here to tell you that I will play my last two games at AC Milan. My career continues, but in the MLS. I am very very proud of everything I have done for the club in these three years,” Giroud said in an interview published on social media by the club.

“It’s the right time to say it. Sorry, I’m a little emotional. My story with Milan ends this year, but Milan will remain in my heart forever.”

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Giroud signed for Milan from Chelsea in the summer of 2021 and won the Serie A title in his first season with the seven-time European champions.

The 37-year-old, a World Cup winner with France in 2018, has scored 48 goals in all competitions for Milan including 16 this season ahead of Euro 2024 in Germany.

Olivier Giroud will wave goodbye to Milan fans at the San Siro in their final match of the season against Salernitana in a fortnight.

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Olivier Giroud was officially made a goalkeeper by AC Milan on Sunday after the France striker’s heroics between the sticks at Genoa helped his team take the top spot in Serie A.

Veteran forward Giroud took Mike Maignan’s place in the Milan goal after his Les Bleus teammate was sent off in the seventh minute of injury time and did enough to ensure the away side won 1-0 and moved two points ahead of local rivals Inter Milan.

“Last night Olivier Giroud became part of Milan history by courageously defending the Milan goal in the final minutes of our match with Genoa,” Milan said in a statement.

“The club has decided to honour his performance in our last line of defence by putting him in the list of goalkeepers.”

AC Milan also said that fans could buy a replica goalkeepers’ jersey with “Giroud 9” on the back as an homage to an incredible ending to Saturday’s tight victory.

Giroud can be seen on AC Milan’s website smiling in the goalkeeping kit — which on Saturday night he said he would frame — above a perfect record of zero goals conceded in his seven league appearances this season.

He was brought on as a substitute midway through the second half at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris to help Milan break down a stubborn Genoa.

But instead, Giroud was key to holding off a stoppage-time siege from Genoa after Christian Pulisic put Milan ahead in the 87th minute.

Olivier Giroud could only watch on helplessly as Albert Gudmundsson clipped a free-kick off the crossbar right after Maignan was dismissed and the 37-year-old pulled on the goalkeeper’s jersey and gloves.

And he capped an incredible ending to a match, in which Genoa’s goalkeeper Josep Martinez was also sent off, by rushing out of his goal to twice deny Genoa and ensure Milan took the three points back to the San Siro.

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NAPLES: AC Milan reached the semi-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday after Olivier Giroud struck the crucial goal in a 1-1 draw at Napoli which completed a 2-1 aggregate victory over their fellow Italians.

Giroud tapped in what turned out to be the decisive goal two minutes before the break after a blistering run from Rafael Leao, who was once again key as Milan beat Napoli for the third time this month.

The France striker’s 13th goal of the season saved his blushes after he missed a penalty midway through the first half.

Stefano Pioli’s side now have the prospect of a local derby in the last four as Inter Milan hold a two-goal lead ahead of their second leg with Benfica on Wednesday night.

“I’m very proud of this team, with that spirit we can dream of anything,” said Giroud to Mediaset.

“In the next round there will be another hard match whether it’s against Inter or Benfica, but if we keep this spirit we can go anywhere.”

After the match Mediaset showed Leao a video of Ruud Gullit setting up a goal with an almost identical run at Napoli in 1988.

“It’s the same,” said a shocked Leao.

“It’s what I try to do, go at players, it’s how I can make difference. If I can’t score I look for my teammates. I saw Giroud there.”

Milan have not contested a Champions League semi-final since they were crowned kings of Europe for the seventh and most recent time in 2007.

Victor Osimhen scored in stoppage time but it was not enough for Napoli who are creaking as they come towards the end of what has been a phenomenal season.

Luciano Spalletti’s once freewheeling team are  struggling for goals and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia also had a penalty saved with 10 minutes remaining, a miss which condemned his team to defeat.

Napoli are on the verge of their first league title since 1990, but after being placed on the easier side of the draw Tuesday’s exit was an underwhelming end to their European adventure.

– Well-organised Milan –

Their hardcore fans had agreed a truce in an ideological battle with owner Aurelio De Laurentiis which had made the atmosphere at home matches poisonous, and on Tuesday a packed Stadio Maradona was initially in fine voice.

Their team went straight at Milan, dominating possession and pushing the opposition back towards the vibrating stands.

However, the best they could muster was two long-distance efforts from Matteo Politano which crept wide. On Milan’s first serious attack Mario Rui clattered into Leao and handed Giroud the chance to give the away side a huge advantage from the penalty spot.

However Giroud’s weak effort was easily stopped by Alex Meret, whose save unleashed a roar from the stands, a colossal racket repeated when he prevented Giroud netting a more than presentable chance shortly afterwards.

Napoli had scored at least three goals in all of their previous Champions League home games this season but looked short on ideas against a well-organised Milan defence which kept a tight lid on Osimhen.

And as the hosts pushed to level the scores on aggregate, Milan pounced at the end of the first half.

Leao scooped up the ball after Tanguy Ndombele’s sloppy control and charged from deep his own half, breezed past three Napoli players and rolled an unmissable chance across to Giroud, who fell to his knees in a mixture of joy and relief.

Napoli were again on the front foot after the break but struggled to create much, with Mathias Olivera’s header wide from a 64th-minute corner the best chance until Fikayo Tomori handled Giovanni Di Lorenzo’s low cross as he put in a challenge in the penalty area.

Kvaratskhelia fluffed his own spot-kick just like Giroud, meaning Osimhen’s bullet header in the 93rd minute meant nothing for Napoli who will wonder what might have been after wasting so many chances in the first leg.

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