The official announcement has arrived from Olivier Giroud. He will leave AC Milan at the end of the season and will then move to the MLS.
Here are his words to the microphones of the club's official channel:
"I will play my last two games with Milan and then I am going to MLS. I am very proud of everything I have done with Milan in these three years. It is the right moment to say it, I am excited, my story with Milan ends this year. Milan will remain forever in my heart."
Giroud added:
"I made this decision a few weeks ago. I gave everything to Milan from 35 to almost 38 years old. For me and for the family, it's the right time for a different life experience than Milan."
He continued:
"Family makes sacrifices during our career. We are in a life that goes 200 km/h. Today I want to think more about the family, it is not the end of my career."
On his passion for football:
"Football is my passion, wearing this shirt is an honour. I think ending my career at a high level and at Milan was what I wanted."
On his upcoming last matches with Milan:
"I wanted to leave with a trophy, I'm competitive and I've given everything for this shirt since day one. Now the important thing is to secure the second place, the last home game I'll be emotional. I want to finish well, I want to thank the fans. I have respect for those who work at Milanello and the fans have welcomed me wonderfully, I couldn't have dreamed of a first year with a Scudetto and the fabulous emotions we experienced together. I am proud."
Giroud also said:
"I am very grateful and always want more, paying attention to nutrition and sleep. If you want to play until 38 years old, you have to be a professional, and the most important thing is also the desire."
Any fear?
"No fear, but I am nostalgic. I want to finish well with Milan as well as with my future club and win."
Dreams?
"Dreams? A European Championship, it will be my last. We lost it in the final at home in 2016. Then we became world champions in Russia. Closing at the top with Milan and France was the right decision, the right moment."
On family:
"I dream of a different life experience for my children too. The opportunity to see another culture practically. I'm also happy because I will be with my friend from the national team Lloris, incredible to find ourselves there."
You have only been here for three years, but you have entered the hearts of all of us. Did you expect it and how did you approach these three years?
"People who know me well know that I always want to win, I want to be a likable person off the field too. Everywhere I've played, I've left people who loved me, and for me, that's very important."
What did you expect when you arrived here?
"I expected the crazy atmosphere of San Siro, but when, for example, we won this Scudetto in the first year, I didn't expect so many people on the streets. I didn't expect so much love from the fans, so much passion, because when I was young, I was a fan of Milan, but you're far away, you're in France, and you don't see these things every day. When you're inside this club, you realise that it's a top club, a great club, and it's an honour to play with this shirt. When you're at Milanello and you see the photos on the walls... I didn't expect Barbara, Giorgio (two Milanello stewards) at Milanello and to know after two weeks that they knew what I wanted for breakfast. That was very nice. I talk about them, but I can talk about many people who welcomed me well and whom I love. When you arrive at Milan and receive this kind of welcome, it makes you understand that you've arrived at a special club, with special values that resonate with me. It's always about helping others, staying united, close. For me, it's also a very strong human experience."
When do you think your love spark with Milan ignited?
"When Milan came looking for me. I was born in '86, so I saw Maldini's team, whom I also want to thank, because he and the coach gave me this trust. I started watching Milan when I was young, and then as a boy Sheva was my favourite player. Milan won a lot. In Italy, only Milan."
Do you remember your first day here at Milan? Giroud answered:
"I remember this moment well, when I took the shirt, smelled it, and kissed the emblem. As if it were yesterday."
What does that shirt smell like three years later?
"The same feeling. Just that I have the pride of having won a Scudetto, a special emotion."
Do you think you and Milan met too late?
"If you ask me if I wanted to change anything about my career, I say nothing. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to live my passion, to have played in big clubs, and also to play in England."
If there had been a script for this adventure, would you have written it like this?
"Yes, I would sign immediately for the Scudetto in the first year, especially after a few years without winning. So I am very proud of that."
You cried four times for Milan. This shows how much you lived the matches, this shirt... Giroud said:
"My daughter said to me, 'But daddy, I never see you cry.' I replied to her saying that I do but I hide it. I cried for the World Cup, for the Scudetto, but when the team is not doing well, when I feel that we could have done better, especially for our fans who are always here supporting the team, it hurts me because I'm a competitor who, when disappointed, is so much to the point that tears come."
Do you think with your children today we have four more Rossoneri?
"Oh yes. I can't wait to go with them to the field for the last game. They love going to San Siro, they all have the shirt, speaking a bit of Italian. My children play for the club affiliated with Milan and I really like seeing them play with the red and black shirt. I don't know if they will become footballers, but it's what dad has always done. Those are the values I want to give to them."
How has your family helped you in these years?
"My family, my entourage, my faith, have always helped me to be a positive person with respect, humility. I can't complain because once again I can only be grateful that this dream came true many years ago. They are the little ones of Milan. They speak without filters, with their hearts. I hope to be a true example for them because football has given me so much and one day obviously I have to do the same for football."
Do you feel a bit like a guide, a little father figure, in the locker room? Giroud said:
"Yes. Family, brothers. We are united, 'no matter what.' The young ones sometimes tease me. In my head, I am young. Every time the guys, the younger ones, need me, I'm always here. Last time I saw an interview with Simic, talking about his experience, talking about training with the first team, this is the good spirit that a young player, at Milan, must have. I think the club trains good players."
What bond have you created with the Milan fans?
"Yes, yes, for me, the period of Covid was very frustrating. We players play football to experience emotions, to share these moments on the field with the fans, with people, with Milan supporters. I was lucky to experience this first year that drove me crazy. I saw children, women, elderly people crying. That's the most beautiful thing about football."
After watching a video dedicated to him by his Milan teammates:
"This is one of the best gifts I could ask for from my teammates, from the coach. Pierre (Kalulu, note), when he made me laugh because he said I brought my "Pat," you gave your hand to this Scudetto. This goes straight to the heart."
What has it meant to you to be a leader? Giroud said:
"I'm not the one who talks a lot in the locker room. I try to do it when I have to. I think the behavior you have in life and with your teammates makes them trust you and vice versa. It's a team of good guys, very kind. They know how much I care about them. If there's advice to give to this team, it's never to give up even in difficult times, to stay united and remember that they had a fabulous 2021/22. I'll always be here if any of them need me, advice, even a call or a video. They will always remain here (mimicking the heart)."
Do you feel you've established a special relationship with any of them?
"I was very happy to find Bennacer again. There was Pierre, Theo, many French players. Also Leao, who speaks French very well. I arrived with Mike, then there was also Adli. I was also very proud to play with a player like Ibra. He welcomed me very well and I'll always remember what he said when he saw me: 'There's only one king in Milan, and it's me.' I liked it because it was friendly. It makes you understand that you're arriving at a great club and that you have to give your best."
It's been a long, beautiful journey, with some obstacles. What have disappointments taught you?
"We must always have the desire to learn. That's the most important thing and to aim everyone in the same direction."
Do you have any regrets?
"I don't like this word. For me, this year the league was very difficult, because Inter had a great journey, but in Europe, yes. I was devastated when we lost to Roma. It wasn't that we wanted to play like that, we played below our level. There was frustration, I was devastated after that game because I wanted to bring another trophy to Milan. I hope Milan, even when I leave, will win again, and again. I'll always be a Milan fan and it will always remain in my heart. I love you very much, so much."
Giroud, how would you like to be remembered?
"Heritage is being a good example for the young. It gives me great pleasure to see the youngsters from Milan speak so highly of me. I think people will remember the brace against Inter when we had to win that match. It changed the relationship a bit with the fans who made this song 'He's turned Giroud'. Then there was 'Giroud saved it'. So from that moment on, I had the love and passion of the fans. The thing that impressed me, that made me see that Milan is a special club, is that these fans never leave you, like the song. When we lost games, they were always here, they are always here. If I can say something about the last game, which will be mine, not because I only think about myself, but because I want to leave Milan with fans singing."
Giroud then concluded:
"Thank you for this emotion, once again, special with this great club. I will always remain available for this club and for these people who I love so much and will always make me happy here, at home. Milan, at San Siro, at Milanello I just want to say that I felt at home as if I had arrived in a family from day one."
