Report: Giroud set to leave Arsenal at the end of the season

Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud is reportedly set to make his way back to Ligue 1 in the summer, following personal problems that arose a few weeks ago.

The French international was recently embroiled in an off-field issue, with reports suggesting he had cheated on his wife Jennifer with model Celia Kay.

According to a report in The Sun, Giroud is desperate to reconcile with his wife and has agreed to move back to France after Jennifer reportedly asked her husband to leave London.

[Jennifer] has agreed to take him back but only on the condition they leave London and England.

He [Giroud] is desperate to save the marriage because he knows how stupid he’s been – so he is going along with what she wants.

The 27 year old signed for the Gunners from Montpelier in the summer of 2012 and after struggling to settle in initially, he has become a key player for Wenger’s men. He netted 17 goals in all competitions in his first season at the North London club and has already racked up 18 goals and eight assists this season.

He isn’t blessed with lightning speed, but he isn’t slow too. His ability to interlink moves is a dangerous weapon for Arsenal, but he isn’t the explosive striker the club craves. He is also reaching the peak of his powers and is likely to begin slowing down across the next few years.

He has proven a dedicated servant to Arsenal this season, but it could be wise to offload the forward before these off field issues hamper his performances on the pitch even more than they have already. Not that he is a bad player, as he deserves praise for his efforts this season, but Arsenal need a better, more direct striker to keep up with their major rivals in the coming years.

That said, if he can sort out his personal life then he we should retain him as we need all the fire power we can get. There are still no guarantees we will actually sign a star striker as last summer proved.