Arsenal
20 Goals And 8 Assists – Is this Good-looking French Star, A Curse Or Gift For Arsenal?
Does Olivier Giroud deserve so much criticism from Arsenal fans?
Olivier Giroud scored his 20th goal of this season with a sublime right footed shot against West Ham United, which happens to be his 14th goal in this season’s premier league. Arsenal fans have been very critical of Olivier Giroud’s performances. The Frenchman hasn’t been the prolific world class striker who could have been a replacement for van Persie.
Giroud
He was bought for a fee of 9.6 million and the Frenchman has done enough justice to his transfer fee by having a decent tally of goals and assists this season. Most of his 20 goals and 8 assists this season came in the early part of the season as he was enjoying a very fruitful spell with Ozil, Ramsey and Walcott.
Injury to key players like Ramsey, who was storming the Premier League with his prolific and confident scoring and Walcott who has been uncharacteristically clinical this season whenever he’s played, harmed Arsenal more than we could have envisaged.
The lack of squad depth was exposed and Ozil’s dip in form is partially due to this factor. Ozil has never worked doubly hard in midfield. He is always the stylish and flamboyant player who has an eye for a pass, but can’t be asked to work hard in defence which he tries to, but cannot, because of his energy level and previous coaching. Ozil was a constant supplier to Giroud when there were ambitious midfielders like Ramsey and Walcott on the pitch. Once Giroud has the ball, he has the strength and control to hold up possession in the forward regions and release Walcott or Cazorla or Ramsey to begin link up plays or set them up for goals.
Giroud’s off the ball movement has never been poor. He does a decent job to position himself in the penalty box as he has the desire to get goals. His finishing has been average though, as he is far from being clinical. He has many misses to his name which Arsenal supporters dislike, as they have been pampered by the likes of Robin van Persie and Thiery Henry being absolutely merciless in front of goal. But that does not mean he deserves so much criticism, especially when his price tag and expectations are nowhere close to the level of van Persie or Henry.
Arsene Wenger had bought Giroud as he saw the potential of releasing Theo Walcott’s pace and letting him finish off moves and get goals. Giroud was expected to be a goal poacher, which he naturally is, and get about 15 goals per season in the league. In 2012, there were on-going negotiations with Walcott’s contract, which also meant that Wenger would have to concede to Theo’s demands. Walcott played centre forward for a few games, signed his contract and then he was pushed back to the wings. Strange, but the concept was the same- Get Walcott to score. Walcott was and still is a very important player and with the support of Olivier Giroud, both can link up and score goals.
Giroud’s major weakness is his pace with the ball. He is slow and cannot have runs with the ball. So he needs runners in the midfield to support him and he delivers. He needs constant suppliers who are also ready to run into space, so that he can pass to them and he can carry on running into space that is much nearer to the goal, creating an easy link up play. With the continued absence of Ramsey and Walcott, things changed. The replacement Oxlade Chamberlain is a different type of player altogether, who is a dribbler with amazing pace with the ball who is not so much known for his runs into space. Wilshere is a box to box playmaker while Arteta and Ozil rarely put in the hard running into space-They are typical passers. Cazorla was the one guy who popped up with his versatility along with Rosicky, but the Gunners had already lost their best form. Most of the times, Giroud was blamed for his weak shooting which was used as an excuse for the drop in form of the team and he became the butt of all Arsenal jokes, despite the fact that the major culprit is lack of squad depth. 14 goals and 8 assists in the league this season, Giroud definitely deserves some praise that he rarely gets.
STATS: SQUAWKA
Arsenal Dragon
Renee Slegers Confirms The Position Arsenal Women Are Looking To Sign a Player From in January Transfer Window
Renee Slegers has confirmed Arsenal will sign a goalkeeper in January after revealing Daphne van Domselaar will miss the remainder of 2025 with a quad tendon issue, leaving the club relying on debutant Anneke Borbe and teenager Amy Liddiard.
The Arsenal boss made the admission during Friday’s press conference ahead of Saturday’s clash with Liverpool, where summer signing Borbe will make her full debut with 17-year-old Liddiard providing backup from the bench.
Van Domselaar requires an injection for her quad tendon problem and won’t return until the new year, compounding Arsenal’s goalkeeper crisis. Manuela Zinsberger is already out for the season after rupturing her ACL in October, one of 17 players across the WSL to suffer knee injuries during that month alone.
“We Need Three Goalkeepers Available”
Asked directly if Arsenal want to sign a goalkeeper in January, Slegers didn’t hesitate. “Yes, definitely, because Manu is out and Daphne has been managing issues, so we’re definitely looking,” she said.
“We’re definitely looking at that position because we think we need a really strong goalkeeper union with three goalkeepers available and we’re not in that situation at the moment so we’ll have to solve that for the second half of the season.”
Arsenal have also been linked with Swedish right-back Smilla Holmberg as they look to strengthen multiple positions during the winter window.
Chloe Kelly Adds to Injury Woes
The goalkeeper situation isn’t Arsenal’s only injury concern for Saturday’s noon kick-off. Chloe Kelly suffered a knee injury on England duty against Ghana on Tuesday and will miss the Liverpool match. Like van Domselaar, Kelly could be unavailable until the new year.
Katie Reid and Michelle Agyemang (on loan at Brighton) have also suffered season-ending ACL injuries this campaign, highlighting the brutal injury toll Arsenal have endured.
Slegers Dismisses Dressing Room “Unrest” Reports
Slegers was also asked about The Athletic’s report claiming the dressing room has been “splintered for many years” with some players “wielding significant influence” and underlying tension between squad members.
The Arsenal boss firmly rejected the narrative. “We won the Champions League, historically we are the most successful club in England, there is noise on the outside, there will always be noise, but on the inside we know what we are doing,” she responded.
“I didn’t agree with it and I think it is unfortunate that this is what is written about us while we are doing so many good things and a lot of people invested in the process.”
Also read: Arsenal Women vs. Liverpool Women: Predicted Lineups + Match Preview
Arsenal face their toughest test of the season as they travel to Villa Park, where Aston Villa have been nearly impenetrable. The Gunners hold a six-point advantage over third-placed Villa, but their defensive injury crisis threatens to derail their title momentum.
Kick-off: 12:30 GMT, Saturday, December 6, 2025
Venue: Villa Park
Referee: Michael Oliver
TV: TNT Sports 1
Form Guide
Arsenal ran out 2-0 winners in this exact fixture last season, with goals from Trossard and Thomas Partey settling matters at Villa Park. However, Villa dealt a seismic blow to Arsenal’s title bid with a 2-0 away victory in mid-April 2024, helping Manchester City to win the league. A 2-2 draw at the Emirates last January again stunted Arsenal’s championship pursuit.
Villa have been in exceptional form, winning seven of their last eight games across all competitions. They showed character in midweek to claim a 4-3 win over Brighton, despite trailing 2-0 after half an hour. Ollie Watkins enjoyed a welcome return to form, netting twice in the first half. At home, Villa have won five of their seven fixtures this season and are unbeaten in their last 25 Premier League home games.
Arsenal maintained their five-point lead at the top with a 2-0 win over Brentford in midweek. Goals from Mikel Merino and Bukayo Saka extended their unbeaten run to 18 matches across all competitions. However, the match came at a cost with injuries to Declan Rice and Cristhian Mosquera.
Team News
Arsenal’s defensive crisis has reached alarming levels. Gabriel Magalhaes suffered a thigh problem while representing Brazil during the November international break and could be missing for up to two months. William Saliba has missed the last two matches after suffering a knock in training, though Arteta confirmed it should be “a matter of days” before his return.
Cristhian Mosquera was forced off before half-time against Brentford with an ankle injury and is set to miss 6 to 8 weeks of football. Declan Rice also limped off late on with a calf issue, though the midfielder told Sky Sports he is “fine” and expects to be available. Leandro Trossard could return from a muscle injury, with Arteta confirming he should be back within “a matter of days.” Kai Havertz remains weeks away from returning after knee surgery complications.
For Villa, Emiliano Martinez is a major doubt with a back injury that kept him out against Brighton. The Argentine was forced to withdraw from the lineup after experiencing pain during the warm-up. Ross Barkley is ruled out for 8-12 weeks with a knee injury suffered against Wolves. Tyrone Mings remains sidelined with a thigh injury and won’t be available until late December at the earliest.
Predicted Lineups
Aston Villa (4-2-3-1): Bizot; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne; Kamara, Tielemans; Buendia, McGinn, Rogers; Watkins
Arsenal (4-3-3): Raya; White, Timber, Hincapié, Calafiori; Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Gyokeres, Eze
Read More: Arsenal Player Ratings vs Brentford: Gunners Restore Five-Point Lead With 2-0 Win
Arsenal Women look to bounce back from consecutive frustrating results when they host bottom-of-the-table Liverpool at Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners have drawn their last two WSL matches and sit fourth, eight points behind leaders Manchester City, while the Reds remain winless with just two points from eight games.
Kick-off: 12:00 GMT, Saturday, December 6, 2025
Venue: Emirates Stadium
TV: Sky Sports Football
Form Guide
Arsenal held Tottenham to a goalless north London derby at Brisbane Road on November 16, dominating possession but failing to convert 13 attempts into goals.
Three days later, they came from behind to beat Real Madrid 2-1 in the Champions League at Meadow Park, with Alessia Russo scoring twice after Caroline Weir’s opener.
Liverpool drew 1-1 with Chelsea at Anfield before the international break, their second consecutive draw following a 1-1 stalemate with Brighton. The Reds sit bottom with two points and have lost all three away fixtures, scoring just once on the road this season.
Team News
Arsenal’s Chloe Kelly is a major doubt after lasting just 20 minutes of England’s 2-0 win over Ghana on Tuesday, clutching her knee following a blocked cross. Sarina Wiegman confirmed Kelly “felt something with her knee that didn’t feel right” but could walk off. Her availability for Saturday remains uncertain.
Captain Kim Little could return after missing international duty, though Lia Walti remains unavailable. Leah Williamson continues recovering from her Euro 2025 knee injury. Katie Reid (ACL), Lina Hurtig, Laura Wienroither and Manuela Zinsberger (ACL) are all long-term absentees.
Liverpool captain Grace Fisk is ruled out for 10 days after suffering a calf problem during England training. Risa Shimizu also remains sidelined. Sophie Roman Haug and Marie Hobinger are long-term casualties with ACL injuries suffered days apart in October.
Predicted Lineups
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Van Domselaar; Fox, Wubben-Moy, Catley, McCabe; Walti, Little; Foord, Maanum, Mead; Russo
Liverpool (4-2-3-1): Laws; Parry, Clark, Matthews, Hinz; Holland, Nagano; Lundgaard, Daniels, Enderby; Olsson
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