Pundit says striker Arsenal sold for £18m is ‘one of the strongest centre forwards ever’

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Arsenal have a rich history when it comes to strikers – north London has played host to some of the greatest forwards ever.

Arsenal fans have been able to witness the immense quality of stars like Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Ian Wright, Robin van Persie, Nicolas Anelka, Alan Smith and Emmanuel Adebayor over the years.

Even in more recent times, forwards such as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have carved their name in Arsenal’s history.

However, there is one striker Arsenal actually sold for a small fee who has now been described as one of the greatest to ever play the game…

Arsenal told they offloaded “one of the strongest centre forwards ever”

Well, Sebastien Squillaci – who made 39 appearances for Arsenal – has now told the Gunners they sold “one of the strongest centre forwards ever” for a bargain sum back in January 2018.

During that winter transfer window, Arsene Wenger decided to sign the aforementioned Aubameyang in a £56m deal from Borussia Dortmund, which then saw Olivier Giroud move to Chelsea for £18m.

That was over six years ago – when the Frenchman was 31 years of age.

Remarkably – at the age of 37 – Giroud is still delivering for club and country.

The France international has scored 15 goals in 38 appearances for AC Milan so far this season – while also impressively providing nine assists – and Squillaci has now heaped praise on the striker.

Speaking to Tutto Mercato Web, the 43-year-old said: “For me it’s not a surprise what he’s doing. I know him very well. We also played together at Arsenal. He’s doing great things, he’s inexhaustible. He has a lot of experience and is a true attacker.

“Inside the penalty area I consider him to be one of the strongest centre forwards ever, not only in the Italian championship but in all of Europe and all over the world. He has a strong head and knows how to play a lot and well for the team too. Giroud is really strong.”

Oliver Giroud deserves more credit

Arsenal were right to sell Giroud back in January 2018 despite his fantastic efforts since then – Wenger was already struggling to give his fellow countryman enough game time that season, and then had to make room for Aubameyang.

Nevertheless, the £12m deal which saw Giroud arrive at Arsenal from Montpellier back in June 2012 was a superb bit of business, after the man from Chambéry scored 105 goals in 253 games for the Gunners and also secured the north Londoners £6m in profit.

Ultimately, the AC Milan No.9 deserves to be recognised as one of the best strikers of his generation.

Giroud is France’s all-time top goalscorer with 57 goals in 131 appearances, sitting ahead of superstars like Thierry Henry, Michel Platini, Kylian Mbappe and Zinedine Zidane.

That truly speaks volumes, and nobody can argue with Squillaci’s verdict.