Certainly one of the best goals of the season so far, Olivier Giroud’s scorpion kick against Crystal Palace was surprisingly beaten by Andy Carroll’s West Ham scissor kick as January’s goal of the month.
Speaking to Le Journal du Dimanche, the Arsenal striker admits he was a bit surprised at the decision going the way of West Ham striker Carroll.
He said: “I don’t want to big myself up, but goals like mine leave a mark on history because they’re rare. There’s been Charles Edouard Coridon and Zlatan Ibrahimovic before me. Carroll’s goal is magnificent, but maybe people won’t remember it in two years time.
“Mine, yes. It’s like Zlatan’s improbable overhead kick against England or Van Basten’s volley, goals I would have liked to score.”
For Olivier Giroud, Any Carroll’s effort for West Ham doesn’t compare.
Enduring a rather difficult season at the Emirates, the France international is having to rely on mostly substitute appearances to show what he is capable of, which he has done superbly by scoring a goal every 95 minutes in the Premier League this season.
Bagging a brace for his country against Luxembourg over the weekend, the Arsenal striker feels he is mentally strong enough to overcome everything his career throws at him, whether it is a lack of time on the pitch or the discontent of fans towards him being chosen ahead of Karim Benzema by Didier Deschamps.
Revealing he doesn’t work with a psychologist to keep his spirits up, he said: “You either have strength of character, or you don’t. I’m rather well equipped. My religious beliefs allows me to put a lot of things into perspective. I’ve gone through many difficult moments in my career and I’ve always got back up thanks to God.
“In Nantes against Cameroon before the 2016 Euro, certain players would have been affected by the booing, but I scored a brace in the next game against Scotland with a nice little Madjer. As a striker, you’re in the spotlight. You’re put on a pedestal, but the downside is you can fall off it very quickly. That’s football. On a razor’s edge. That’s what we love.”
With his two goals against Luxembourg, the Arsenal striker entered the prestigious list of the top 10 top scorers for France with 23 strikes in 60 caps, currently three goals behind Sylvain Wiltord, and only four behind Karim Benzema.
He is, however, someway off the number one spot, currently occupied by Arsenal legend Thierry Henry, with 51 goals in 123 caps, a record expected to stand for quite a few years to come.
