AC Milan's centre-forward, Olivier Giroud, who replaced Real Madrid's Karim Benzema for France's national team, has played an important part in the team's win vs Cagliari away from home yesterday.
The Frenchman spoke to the microphones of Europe 1 about his childhood first before becoming a professional footballer:
"Froges is my village, it's where it all started before going to Grenoble. I have all my friends and a good part of my family who still live in the Grenoble region. I took my first license there, I did all my classes there until I was 12. I have lasting memories of it. I took the ball after school and went to hit a wall. I worked on my technique and my left foot on that wall and when it wasn't a ball, I would take a tennis ball and bang on the front door. I can still hear my dad say to me 'but aren't you sick of it? ' This is where it all started, this is my home", he told Europe 1.
On his beginnings at Montpellier:
"I revealed myself to the general public with my first selection for the France team. After my title of top scorer with Tours. I had the possibility of going across the Channel, to Celtic Glasgow. But I wanted to leave a trace in Ligue 1. I had this phone call from Loulou (Louis Nicollin, president of Montpellier from 1974 to 2017) who persuaded me to sign for Montpellier. I do not regret at all having made these two very great years, especially the second with this title of champion and top scorer."
On Arsenal:
"I am very proud of my journey, of the work accomplished so far. I will fully enjoy it when I stop. I realise this, but all the clubs where I have played are part of the European elite. That is something that I couldn't imagine as a teenager, you can't imagine being so lucky. I'm taking full advantage of it. When we take stock, there will also be the French team, a common thread that I am immensely proud", said Giroud.
"When I have a trophy and shirt room for football and my career, it will be at my house, but I don't know yet where I will be with my family. It will remind me of very beautiful memories. I feel blessed. I won a lot of titles. One of my dreams was the Premier League. It's still something I would have liked to win. Now my other dream is is to become Italian champion with Milan."
On his adventure with Chelsea:
"I was there for three and a half years. I think there are more than one who were surprised to see that I could bounce back at Chelsea. I got this call through a friend of Antonio Conte, who needed a striker. Arsène Wenger recruited Alexandre Lacazette in the summer of 2017 at Arsneal. Six months later, he wanted to bring in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. I had a very simple and honest discussion with him, asking him to let me go and he was a gentleman. He did everything to make it happen, even with a competitor. Everything was done quickly at the end of January 2018."
On playing with AC Milan and competing for Scudetto:
"It's never over, you always have to believe in it, look for the next challenge and have fun. I won a Cup, a Europa League and a Champions League with Chelsea. Lacking playing time, I thought that my adventure in England was coming to an end. I had this call with coach Stefano Pioli and Paolo Maldini in preparation for the Euros, in Nice, and they immediately made a good impression on me and convinced me that this could be a great project. I had a very warm welcome from the tifosi (club supporters). I was quickly put at ease with the technical staff, the coach and the players. I have this ability to adapt, I go towards the others and I want to learn the Italian language, the ways and customs of the country I'm in."
Giroud added:
"It was important to adapt very quickly. I'm happy with that, we have nine games left to achieve something big thing for Milan after a few years without trophies. We have unconditional support from the fans who have adopted me well. There is also the semi-final return in the Italian Cup against Inter. The club never achieved this double. The road is still long, we are going step by step, but it will be undecided until the end."
On scoring the brace in the derby:
"Yes, it gave me a lot of energy and confidence. That day, we were down 1-0. First derby for me. In three minutes, I overturned things. It was an incredible emotion that I will never forget. It's one of the games that matter in a career and it made me go into the hearts of the fans."
On playing with Zlatan Ibrahimovic:
"He's great. He's a person with an extraordinary charisma and personality. He has his own way of communicating with the media. He can seem very tough, impressive and sometimes intimidating. But he's a normal person like you and me with a passion for football. He has a high standard level. He has the role of a big brother, like me. When I started playing, he was already in big clubs."
He added:
"My friends had given me a jersey of him when he was in Barcelona. He is a person with whom I talk a lot. He has a lot of respect when a player arrives in a group and even more when he has this high level of experience. It's a chance to compete with him to be able to score goals and bring the best to the team. He was injured so I continued. It doesn't matter who plays, what matters is being decisive. It shows that even at 35 or 40, you can continue to perform."
On the French national team:
"110 caps and 46 goals. I beat Platini, Papin and Trezeguet. It's been a blessing, extraordinary years with ups and downs. When you're lucky to have been on top of the world in 2018 , you can only be grateful and say thank you for the chance to make the people proud... It's a common thread throughout my career, it remains a bonus, but the objective is to win the Scudetto with Milan."
On the war between Russia and Ukraine, Giroud said:
"I regularly pray about this, for things to improve and to put a little love in hardened hearts. We must support the Ukrainian people, as AC Milan did with this t-shirt with the mention " Peace for Ukraine, peace for the world. There are a lot of things that move me. Families that are divided, that are fleeing Ukraine. It's so sad to think that in 2022, we are in a time of war. I hope things will improve. When I see a player like Yarmolenko (West Ham player) burst into tears after scoring a goal, it's is very touching. We have to stick together and I think it's great that the countries bordering Ukraine are supporting people fleeing Ukraine."
