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Olivier Giroud wants to leave Chelsea in January.
The 33-year striker is desperate not to lose his place in the France Euro 2020 squad, and is concerned that his chances are being damaged by his limited first-team opportunities with his current club. Giroud has started just two Premier League games for the Blues this season, having been eclipsed by the rise of Tammy Abraham at Stamford Bridge.
Abraham is currently injured, but Michy Batshuayi is manager Frank Lampard’s choice as a replacement, meaning that World-Cup winner Giroud is now considering a move elsewhere for guaranteed first-team football.
Lampard has previously indicated that he wants to keep Giroud at the club, but the decision to let him go or not may ultimately hinge on whether the club’s appeal to CAS (the Court of Arbitration for Sport) over their FIFA transfer ban is successful or not. If it succeeds, then they would be able to sign a replacement for the Frenchman in January – if it fails, then his chances of being allowed to leave before the end of the season are likely to diminish.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.