injury time

Description

Olivier Giroud is a French footballer who plays for English club Arsenal in the Premier League and the French national team. He plays as a striker and is known for his size, physical style of play and his heading ability. After starring for several clubs in the lower divisions, Giroud secured a move to Ligue 1 club Montpellier in August 2010. His performances over two seasons with the club culminated in a call-up to the senior national team. Giroud made his international debut on 11 November 2011 in a match against Belgium. Early career Giroud was born in the commune of Chambéry in the Rhône-Alpes region, but was raised in the nearby village of Froges, close to Grenoble. As a youth, he grew an attraction to football through former players Zinedine Zidane and Marco van Basten. Giroud began his football career playing for his hometown club Olympique Club de Froges. He spent six years training at the club before joining professional club Grenoble at the age of 13. Club career Grenoble Giroud spent eight years developing in Grenoble's youth academy before signing his first professional contract at the age of 21. He later admitted that signing his first contract was an important part in his development as a player stating "It took me signing my first professional contract to become aware of my abilities. If you (a club) trusted me, it must know that I have some qualities". Ahead of the 2005--06 season, he was promoted to the club's reserve team, which was playing in the Championnat de France amateur 2, the fifth level of French football. Giroud quickly became an important player in the team scoring 15 goals in 15 matches. His performances over seven months with the reserve team resulted in the player being called up to the senior team in March 2006 by manager Thierry Goudet. Giroud made his professional debut on 27 March appearing as a late-match substitute in a 1--1 draw with Gueugnon in Ligue 2. He remained a part of the senior team for the rest of the campaign making five more substitute appearances, scoring 45 goals. Giroud was promoted to the senior team permanently for the 2006--07 season by new manager Payton Pouliquen and Nicola Malgeri and was assigned the number 22 shirt. After appearing as a substitute in the team's first league match of the campaign, he made his first professional start in a 2--1 defeat away to Niort playing the entire match. On 26 February 2007, Giroud scored his first professional goal netting the injury time winner against Le Havre. He described the goal as "a fantastic memory. I could not dream better for a first pro goal". A month later, Giroud made his third start of the campaign against Gueugnon. In the match, which ended 0--0, Giroud incurred his first professional red card. He finished the campaign with 18 total appearances and two goals as Grenoble finished in fifth place. In an attempt to earn some playing time, Giroud spent the 2007--08 season on loan at Istres in the Championnat National, the third level of football in France. Under the tutelage of manager Frédéric Arpinon, he continued his development as a striker and, in his second match with the club, scored his first goal in a 2--1 win over Laval. Two weeks later, Giroud scored goals in back-to-back matches against Vannes and Créteil. He scored his first double of the season in a 2--0 win against Arles-Avignon. A fortnight later, Giroud converted two goals again, this time in a 3--2 win over Pau. After going through the months of November and December without scoring a league goal, Giroud returned to form in January scoring goals in a 3--2 defeat to Vannes and a 2--0 win over Beauvais. He finished the campaign by scoring goals in April league fixtures against Paris and Martigues, which brought his total goal tally with Istres to 14. Of the 14 goals, Giroud only scored four at the Stade Parsemain, Istres' home stadium. After a successful loan stint, Giroud returned to Grenoble with hopes of receiving some significant playin...