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‘You need cold blood in front of goal’

Olivier Giroud says strikers at the highest level need to have “cold blood in their veins” in front of goal.

The French forward has impressed for Arsenal this season, scoring seven goals in 13 appearances including a second-half header at Manchester City on Sunday.

Giroud was inspired by Thierry Henry when he was younger and feels that to reach the top, strikers must work tirelessly on the training pitch.

"You need to have something that all strikers have in them. You need to keep lucidity in front of goal"

“You can always improve yourself but you need to have talent,” he told Arsenal Player. “Talent is not sufficient on its own, though. I always repeat that because it’s important for young players to know it.

“You need to have something that all strikers have in them. You need to keep lucidity in front of goal and have cold blood, like we say in France, in your veins. You need to be a born striker with a killer instinct.

“I looked up to Andrey Shevchenko and Jean Pierre Papin [when I was younger]. Eric Cantona as well, but the one who scored so many goals was Titi Henry.

“He played for my team, Arsenal, so I was impressed by his performances. He has done really well in his career, especially at Arsenal. If I can do half of what he has done I will be happy.”

 

Olivier Giroud