This time, there is no longer any doubt: Olivier Giroud has announced the end of his international career after the Euro.
The adventure is coming to an end. After almost thirteen years with the Blues, Olivier Giroud will compete in his last competition with the France team. The 37-year-old striker, heading to MLS, confirmed in the columns of The Team his international retirement after the Euro in Germany.
“When you make a choice like that (signing in the United States), it’s also to be able to enjoy your family a little more. We live at 200 miles an hour, we don’t have much time for family. There are five meetings in the season and it seems complicated to me. To be honest, you have to say that this will be my last competition with the Blues, he confided. Obviously, I’m going to miss it a lot. But I think that the French team will be finished after the Euro. We must leave room for young people. »
Olivier Giroud feels weariness
After 111 selections and 57 goals, the top scorer in history for the French team is overtaken by the wear and tear of time, recognizing a certain weariness, which concerns both his body and his mind. “You also have to know not to overdo the season. You have to find the right balance. Afterwards, you should never say ‘Fountain, I won’t drink your water’, but you have to be realistic, he explained. As I said, I also feel physically and mentally tired. Raphaël Varane said it after the World Cup, and he is right. I always said I was going to stop when my body asked me to. I think I have two more good years. But for the French team, in my opinion, it will be over. »
And for his last competition with the Blues – his seventh, a record – Olivier Giroud sees things big. “Emotion must not take over. There is still a competition to win”he whispered, adding: “It’s really the desire to go as far as possible in the competition with this generation that drives me. If I win, apart from the Premier League which is very difficult to win, I will be able to say that I have won everything… Afterwards, I was told a lot about the 60 goal mark for the national team. We watch, but it’s not an obsession. »
