Olivier Giroud: Examining How the Striker Would Fit into Arsenal's Attack

It continues to look extremely likely that Montpellier striker Olivier Giroud will join Arsenal this summer. But it begs the question: How exactly will Giroud fit in with the Gunners?

First, we get the the latest on the potential signing via ESPN:

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Arsenal appear favorites to sign the striker and make him a second attacking addition to their squad after completing a deal for Germany international Lukas Podolski earlier this month.

"Discussions are happening and going well. Things are moving serenely,'' Montpellier's Laurent Nicollin told the Midi Libre newspaper.

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Giroud scored 25 goals last season for the Ligue 1 champs, and many have thought that the additions of he and Podolski would be in an effort to replace Robin van Persie should the star striker depart this summer.

But what happens if (and I believe he will) van Persie stays at the Emirates? How will Arsenal look in the attacking third next season then?

The most likely scenario would be that Giroud would act as the second striker, offering some punch from the position when van Persie needed a day off. He certainly could have used a few more days off this year.

That would leave Podolski to play the left wing and Theo Walcott to man the right, with Gervinho and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain available as well (it's time to cut ties with Andrei Arshavin).

But Arsene Wenger could also look to occasionally play van Persie on the wing to get him and Giroud on the field at the same time, or even experiment with a true two-striker attack.

While the former seems more likely than the latter, tinkering with the new front line at the Emirates could lead to several promising and surprising results. The lack of goal scorers for the Gunners after van Persie was troubling last season, so I wouldn't be shocked to see van Persie and Giroud see the pitch together early in the season.

Ultimately, it will be a good problem to have.

Of course, this all presumes, optimistically, that van Persie will return. If not, both Podolski and Giroud will spend time playing from the central striker position, with Podolski also seeing time on the wing. But let's not dwell on that less ideal possibility.

For now, let's enjoy the possibilities with all three playing for the Gunners next season.

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