Chelsea capture Olivier Giroud from Arsenal

Olivier Giroud has moved from Arsenal, across London, to city rivals Chelsea in a deal that sees the north London club earning around £18 million.

Giroud has played sparingly this season, and has only made a handful of starts for Arsenal. With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s signing made official earlier today this pushed Giroud to third-choice center forward, and with the World Cup this summer he definitely needed to seek out a club that afforded him the time to play more often to secure his spot in Russia.

That said, it’s sad to see him go - especially to a city and league rival like Chelsea. His contributions and stats speak for themselves, and while he’s 31 years old that doesn’t make his exit any less painful. Often unfairly criticized by many corners of Arsenal fandom, he decided to fight for his place at the club this past summer as opposed to leaving to a club where he’d be assured more consistent playing time. Even his move to Chelsea assumes more risk to the very thing he needs to get in France’s squad. In other words, Giroud has, isn’t, and never will back down from challenges in his path.

Au revoir, Big Sexy. Feel free to come back home when you can.