Nice President Gauthier Ganaye has opened the door to Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud. The 32-year-old has become a bit-part player with Chelsea and is reportedly willing to make a return to his homeland of France in order to play more regularly.
The veteran may have to remain at Stamford Bridge for another full season. The Blues have been slapped with a two window transfer ban after being found guilty of contraventions with regards to signing young players. They do have a number of worthy strikers out on loan such as Michy Batshuayi and Tammy Abraham, however, these players lack experience at the highest level and it would be ideal to still have an experienced striker within the first-team. Gonzalo Higuain’s future is the subject of speculation and he could be set to return to Juventus. The Argentine has struggled to make a noticeable impact since arriving at Stamford Bridge in January and it may be better if the club move him on rather than seek to make him a permanent signing.
Despite his advanced age, Giroud still seems interested in playing for the French national team and it looks likely that he will want to play a role for his country during the Euro 2020 campaign, hence a move to the Ligue 1 where he can get more regular game time could be appealing.
It remains to be seen whether Nice will be willing to fork out to recruit Giroud.
“He is at the end of his contract, he still performs well at his age,” Ganaye said as quoted by Goal.
“Come on, let’s tell you it’s possible. His salary? Yeah, it’s really expensive.”
Even though Giroud is past his peak, he is still capable of performing at the highest level. He has been very effective in the Europa League so far this season and has managed to contribute 10 goals from 11 games in Europe’s second-tier club competition up to this point.
