Olivier Giroud's agent opens up possibility of playing elsewhere

The Gonzalo Higuain rumors to Arsenal, resurfacing after a three-year hiatus, have led to speculation that Olivier Giroud might be used as makeweight in a deal with Napoli. And his agent, some random bloke by the name of Mickael Manuello, opened the door ever so slightly ajar by admitting his client would enjoy Naples and all the trappings the region has to offer:

Giroud's agent - asked about the possibility of moving to Napoli - told Radio CRC that the France international would enjoy playing for the Serie A club.

The agent, Mickael Manuello, said: "There is no fear in Olivier going to Napoli, it is a magnificent city.

"In Campania, my client would lead a wonderful life, not to mention that the type of game orchestrated by Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri could enhance the quality of a centre-forward like him."

He added: "At the moment, Giroud is an Arsenal player. If he was asked to leave, then we would evaluate our options."

While this is a bit of typical agent bluster that shows up daily during transfer windows, Giroud and his agent clearly feel comfortable in the fact that the player is coming off a pretty successful summer with the French national team and knows his services would be in demand were Arsenal to choose to move on.

Of course the price has to be right for Arsenal to consider negotiations with Napoli themselves, and from yesterday's report of €60 million plus Giroud to acquire Higuain's services this particular deal itself still doesn't make any sense whatsoever from the buying club's perspective.

That's not to say that Arsenal aren't interested in Higuain, or that Giroud and his agent aren't exploring their options abroad, and the quotes above come from a Sky Sports post that is headlined and spends the majority of the post trying to lay the groundwork for a Higuain-to-Arsenal move. It's that, at the end of the day, dollars (or euros, or worthless pounds in this case) need to make sense.

And until there's something resembling a fair price for the exchange of a 29 year-old center forward for a 28 year-old center forward, this deal as it stands now doesn't look to be moving with any sort of urgency.