Some Chelsea FC fans have slammed the performance of Olivier Giroud following the club’s disappointing 1-0 derby defeat to West Ham United in the Premier League.
The France international was handed with only his second Premier League start of the season and that came as a result of Tammy Abraham being sidelined with a hip problem.
However, the marksman struggled to make a genuine impact during his 71 minutes on the field and barring the one close-range effort on goal, he was anonymous for the Blues.
Blues boss Frank Lampard stated that he rewarded Giroud with a starting spot ahead of Michy Batshuayi due to his good application in training but the Frenchman clearly did not make the most of the opportunity.
Giroud managed only 21 touches of the ball during the cross-town derby, as per SofaScore, and his distribution was likewise limited as he managed just eight successful passes to his teammates.
As a result, some Blues supporters have been left disappointed with Giroud, who could not influence the proceedings against Manuel Pellegrini’s side on Saturday.
Twitter Reactions:
Prior to the game, there was much talk of about Giroud benefiting from Reece James’ precise crosses but nothing of that sort happening on the pitch where the Frenchman could not gather the ball at times.
That can be attributed to Giroud’s limited exposure to Premier League and Champions League football this season where Tammy Abraham has emerged as the undisputed choice under Lampard.
Chelsea have a mid-week league game against Aston Villa at home. Batshuayi is likely to get the nod upfront, suppose Abraham remains in the treatment room.
Leave a Reply