Olivier Giroud’s fantastic 2022 may have drawn to a close in the worst way with defeat in the World Cup final, but he harbours hopes of a similarly successful 2023.
La Gazzetta dello Sport report that Giroud has not yet returned to Milanello after losing the World Cup final on Sunday against Argentina as he will have a post-tournament vacation, but he has already circled the next match on his calendar in red: Salernitana on January 4.
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Giroud will return to Italy on December 30, i.e. four days before the match, so while the Frenchman is increasingly fierce and determined it remains to be seen if he will start. However, he is certainly ready to start 2023 just as he closed 2022: Italian champion with Milan, goals in bursts and France’s top scorer.
With five goals in Serie A, four in the Champions League, one in the Nations League and four in Qatar for a total of 14 goals in 27 games since the end of August, the 36-year-old has an average of one ring every 127 minutes.
Giroud arrived in 2021 after being close to arriving in Italy several times, in particular Lazio and Inter, but as soon as he arrived at Milanello he chose the No.9 which is supposedly cursed, expressing a desire to ‘break the taboo’.
Since then he became the one who engineered the comeback against Inter in February, the one who won the game against Napoli at the Stadio Maradona, who equalised in the trip to Lazio and scored the first two goals to seal the Scudetto in Sassuolo.
Once back from vacation the topic of his renewal will also be discussed. His contract expires in June, a meeting between his agent and the Rossoneri management will be set for the new year, with the desire to move forward together.
