Oliver Giroud is just one of the three Arsenal players to have penned a new deal at The Emirates, alongside his fellow French teammates Laurent Koscienly and Francis Coquelin.

Keeping the centre-forward is crucial to Arsenal and their title charge. Giroud may be the topic of conversation of many Arsenal fans saying “we need better” but what the Frenchman does off the ball, is just as important as what he does on the ball.

Oliver Giroud is the Gunners’ only traditional centre-forward, with a few other players being able to play the position, but the striker role is not their primary position. These players include Alexis Sanchez, Lucas Perez and Danny Welbeck after his long-awaited return from injury.

This season is a crucial one for the north London side. The Gooners are pushing for silverware in what could well be Arsene Wenger’s final season in charge, therefore the Frenchman needs the best players available.

Here are the THREE reasons why Giroud signing a new contract at the Emirates is good news for Arsenal fans..

His link-up play

Oliver Giroud is often criticised by pundits and fans for not being the striker Arsenal need to win a Premier League title, due to not being a centre-forward who will score twenty (or more) goals a season. However, people often look past his assists and passing in the final third of the pitch. The Frenchman has a beautiful touch, and a brilliant aerial presence. In addition to this, his strength plays a key factor of holding the ball, so his teammates can get involved with an attack.

Although the target man may not score as many goals as past Arsenal strikers, his influence in a game is massive. Besides, it’s not as if he doesn’t score goals, with ninety-one goals currently in his Arsenal career.

 

Super sub

There’s no doubt that the Frenchman wants to start as many games as he can, and with being left out in the cold for a while this season, Oliver made his way back into the side with brilliant performances coming off the bench and changing the game for Arsene Wenger. No striker likes to be labelled as a “super sub” but Giroud could well be one. With vital goals from the bench, the striker has gotten a result for Arsenal when they have needed him most.

Furthermore, the target man being introduced to the game from the bench gives Arsene Wenger and Arsenal the opportunity to mix their game plan up, and use a new tactic to win the game. If Oliver doesn’t start the match, it would usually be Arsenal’s star man, Alexis Sanchez playing centre-forward, a complete different dimension to what Giroud offers. If the game isn’t going to plan, Wenger would have one last roll of the dice and introduce the target man.

Passion

In the modern game, passion of the players is nowhere near the level it was many years ago. With this being the case, it’s important to keep the players who know what it means to play for the club, and respect the crest on their shirt. Fans can certainly see their tall Frenchman has bags of passion when wearing the Arsenal shirt, and this is a trait that fans love watching.

Oliver may not be the quickest in the squad but he is definitely up there with the top players in terms of work rate and determination – chasing defenders continuously for ninety-minutes on a weekly basis.

After scoring the equaliser against Bournemouth in a thrilling 3-3 draw at the Vitality Stadium, in his post-match interview, Giroud claimed it wasn’t enough, and Arsenal should winning these games.