Olivier Giroud, AC Milan's forward and Serie A champion now, spoke to the media on the occasion of launching his new book 'Crederci, sempre. Perché ho fiducia nella vita, in Dio, in me stesso e nel destino' (Believe us, always. Because I have faith in life, in God, in myself and in destiny).
Here are his words:
"Why I chose this moment to release the book? Because it is a book, not of a lifetime, I am only 36 years old, but of a piece that is a nice gift for my children, for all the young people who have doubts in life. Life is made up of difficult moments. I like the words of Nelson Mandela, who says 'Don't judge me for my successes but for how many times I fall and get up'. This is inspiring for me, it makes me fight with great determination when I am facing difficult moments. There are also many beautiful things, not only difficulties, but it is part of life and my life."
On his motto:
"Always believe in it also means in the future. I think if you don't believe you can't reach your goals. It is a basic thing but very true. This year it will be even more difficult but we are ready to fight for the Scudetto and the second star."
Was the Scudetto won in the derby where you scored the brace?
"After that, it can be said, but I think that from February onwards it was a long time. We certainly didn't win it, but we didn't lose that night either. It was a big turning point that evening and also for us and to believe."
On the arrival of Divock Origi, Giroud said:
"He speaks French, I played my role as a big brother because it is very important to welcome everyone even if I am going to compete with him. I have always said that competition is very important to be strong, to learn and to give your best. He is a good reinforcement."
On Zlatan Ibrahimovic:
"When he signs the renewal, I will buy him dinner. We want him to sign, obviously no pressure on the club. He's still hungry. He is important for the locker room. I talked a lot with him, he has the same desire to win even at 40."
Which team are you afraid of the most in view of this new season?
"Juve and Inter are the teams that have strengthened the most", said Giroud, "It will be a fierce battle for us with them."
How would you like to finish your career here in AC Milan?
"I certainly feel very good here in Milan, I am very happy. I don't want to think too far, I've always been like this. I have fun every day in the present. For the future, we'll see. But it's sure that I want the fans to remember me as a good player and a nice person, which is the most important thing."
Your wife was not there to celebrate at Reggio Emilia. Is it a motivation to win again for you? Did you promise her something? Giroud said:
"The problem is that when you win the Scudetto away from home it is difficult to organise. You saw that after the match people made an invasion, it was a good decision like this and the next day we came here to Casa Milan to take the photos and I have some special photos with my children and my wife."
