Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger drew a lot of criticism from Gunners fans this week, when he allowed striker Olivier Giroud join Chelsea in a £19 million transfer deadline day move.
Once again the French coach was accused of selling his best players to a top-six rival, however speaking before his sides Premier League fixture tomorrow the 68-year-old explained why he sanctioned the move when he said:
“Ideally, you want him to go to clubs not competing with you,”
“On the other hand, his deal was linked with the [Pierre-Emerick] Aubameyang deal and he wanted to stay in London – he had just had a third baby.
“It was difficult for him to leave London and we owe Olivier a lot because of his dedication, commitment and love for the club, which was absolutely exceptional.
“It would have been difficult to turn it down, just because it was selling him to a competitive club.”
Wenger clearly makes the point, that because of the bizarre striker merry-go-round that occurred between Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Michy Batshuayi, and Giroud, he had little choice but to allow the 31-year-old to move to Stamford Bridge.
Gunners fans however, will be sad to see Giroud go. The France international striker scored over 100 goals for the club since joining from Ligue Un side Montpellier in 2012, and was a hugely popular figure at the Emirates.
Like so many other players this month, he was also keen on securing a move, as he looks for more regular first-team football ahead of next years World Cup in Russia.
