Serie A giants Juventus and Inter Milan are preparing to make a move for Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud, according to Italian outlets Tuttosport and Ilbianconero.com.
Giroud joined Chelsea in January 2018, scoring 30 goals in 96 appearances since – an impressive record given a large percentage of those appearances would have been off the bench. He has won an FA Cup and a Europa League title at Stamford Bridge, scoring in the final of the latter.
The Frenchman’s goalscoring form towards the end of the 2019/20 season was crucial, as his eight goals in 12 outings helped the Blues seal Champions League football.
However, the arrival of Timo Werner from RB Leipzig in the summer has seen his game time limited, and the former Arsenal man is yet to make a start in the league or Europe this season.
Antonio Conte, who signed Giroud while at Chelsea, is reportedly targeting a reunion with the striker, as he looks for back up for Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez.
Lukaku and Martinez have started the season in fine fashion, scoring 12 Serie A goals between themselves in 9 games. However, Inter’s lack of depth up top will be a concern for Conte.
Tuttosport state that the Nerazzurri are hoping to complete a six-month loan deal with an option to buy for the World Cup winner. Napoli forward Arkadiusz Milik, whose contract expires in the summer, is also a target.
Meanwhile, Ilbianconero.com claims that Juventus manager Andrea Pirlo has named Giroud as one of four targets, alongside Blues left-back Emerson Palmieri, Sassuolo’s Manuel Locatelli, and Udinese’s Rodrigo De Paul.
Pirlo has not made an ideal start to his managerial career. Despite still being unbeaten, La Vecchia Signora are only in fourth place, six points off league leaders AC Milan. Furthermore, they’re the lowest scorers in the top six, and seemingly suffer from an over-reliance on superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.
If Giroud was to move to Juventus, he would meet a number of familiar faces, having previously shared a dressing room with former Arsenal teammates Wojciech Szczesny and Aaron Ramsey, Spanish forward Alvaro Morata, and France international Adrien Rabiot.
The 34-year-old has not been silent on the issue of his game time at Stamford Bridge, labelling the matter “concerning”.
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