Giroud to make Chelsea future call in January but is prepared to ‘fight’ for now

Olivier Giroud is prepared to “fight” for game time at Chelsea, but the World Cup winner admits he may need to consider a move elsewhere in the January transfer window.

Exit talk is nothing new for the France international striker, with speculation having followed him around for some time.

That is because, despite his best efforts, he has struggled to nail down a regular starting berth at Stamford Bridge.

He was promoted ahead of Tammy Abraham in Frank Lampard’s pecking order towards the end of 2019-20, leading to a 12-month contract extension being taken up, but has slipped again this term.

With Timo Werner having been added to the attacking pot in west London, competition for places is fierce.

At 34 years of age, Giroud cannot afford to be wasting time on the bench and accepts that a big call will have to be made in 2021 if he still finds himself on the fringes of the fold at Stamford Bridge.

Quizzed on his future plans while away on international duty, the former Arsenal star said: “I've written a book called 'Always Believe It' so I’m not going to go anywhere without a fight.

“There is competition but I will fight and we saw the rewards of that at the end of last season.

“I am convinced that I have a role to play at Chelsea. We will see in January.”

For now, Giroud is focused on friendly and UEFA Nations League dates with France.

Didier Deschamps has already revealed that the experienced frontman will be awarded a 100th cap for his country at some stage.

Giroud is rightly proud of that achievement, saying of reaching a century: “I signed in Ligue 1 at 25, it's an atypical course. The chance to play for Les Bleus at that age was just a bonus.

“I never set any limits for myself and maybe at 75-80, I thought 'why not 100?' It's a good number but I still have many years ahead of me.”

A man who helped his nation to global glory in 2018 added: “If someone told me I was going to reach a centenary at 34, I wouldn't have believed it when I was at Grenoble or Tours.

“But, that's the beauty of football. I have always worked my way up through the ranks one after the other, thanks to great people.

“I am a good example for young people who do not turn professional at 17.”

Giroud is also chasing down the 41-goal mark of French legend Michel Platini, with just one more effort required in order to emulate an icon and move second on an all-time chart behind Thierry Henry – who has 51 efforts to his name.

“My goal is to match him as quickly as possible, to become the second-best scorer in history and it would be a privilege and an honour to match such a legend of French football,” said Giroud.

France are due to face Ukraine in a friendly on Wednesday before then taking in Nations League clashes with Portugal and Croatia.