Giroud reveals link to Bayern

Olivier Giroud has revealed he was a target for Bayern Munich in the summer but is happy to be at Arsenal.

The France international striker saw a potential move to the UEFA Champions League finalists fall through after Mario Mandzukic caught the eye at Euro 2012.



But the former Montpellier man has no regrets about the fact that he subsequently joined the Gunners because he is enjoying life in the Premier League.



Asked if he had been in touch with Bayern, Giroud was quoted in The Sun as saying:

"Not directly but my agent was and it was validated by Bayern.



"They wanted time to watch the Euros and Mandzukic had a good tournament.



"The fact I was wooed by Arsenal is good. I'm very happy here. English football is what I hoped for.



"The people live, eat and sleep football here."

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Giroud feels ban 'very harsh'

Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud believes it is 'very harsh' that he must serve a three-match suspension following his red card in the victory over Fulham.



The French forward was issued with his marching orders in the 1-0 victory at Craven Cottage on Saturday for a last-minute tackle on Stanislav Manolev.



Arsenal's appeal against the mandatory ban was rejected by the Football Association and Giroud must now sit out three of the Gunners' final four games as they battle to secure a top-four finish.



And the £13million summer signing from Montpellier was left flabbergasted by the decision to uphold the original verdict.



Giroud said: "I was very surprised at the verdict as my action was unintentional.



"It does not hurt me but the rules in England are really very harsh. Very harsh indeed."


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Giroud - We need to be mentally strong

Olivier Giroud believes that Arsenal’s mental strength will be an important factor in Saturday’s game against Swansea City.

Following their Champions League victory at Bayern Munich, the Gunners hit the road again to visit the Liberty Stadium for their second game in less than 72 hours.



Giroud accepts that fatigue may be a factor, but insists the squad’s hunger to secure a top-four finish will help them overcome that.

“When you play a few games in a week, the [final one] is always difficult for the legs,” he told Arsenal Player.

“Sometimes you win the last one with mental strength. We have a big squad and we all want to win in Swansea. We need a strong mentality and the legs will run.

“Swansea play great football for a team who played in the Championship two years ago. They are a team with a lot of good players like Michu, but not only him.

“This game will be really important for us. We need the win and we need to continue our good game against Munich and our good form.



“There are 30 points for us to take still, so we need to trust and believe in ourselves.”