Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud 'is the best target man in the world'

Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud is the best “target man” in the world, according to former team-mate Younes Belhanda.

Giroud’s worth has long been debated both at club and international level, with the 30-year-old booed by French fans before Euro 2016 and the subject of an ongoing debate as to whether he is good enough to lead the Arsenal line.

But Giroud’s returns speak for themselves. Last month he became just the 19th player to score 100 goals for Arsenal whilst his healthy return of 27 goals in 66 France games has been enough to convince Didier Deschamps to retain him as Les Bleus’ starting striker.

Belhanda and Giroud were part of the Montpellier side that stunned newly-moneyed Paris Saint Germain to claim the 2011-12 Ligue 1 title and the Moroccan international saw enough from the Arsenal striker to be convinced he ranks among the world’s best.

“For me, Olivier is one of the best forwards in his role,” Belhanda told RMC Sport. “He’s someone who keeps the ball up really well, who knows how to make his number 10 or his wingers play because he has a target man game few strikers have.

“There isn’t a striker in the world who’s better than him as a target man. Especially with the France team, he scores, so you can’t hold anything against him.

“At club level, he doesn’t play that much, but when you have a player in the national team who scores and helps the team win, you can’t say anything.”