Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud claims he would welcome the arrival of England striker Jamie Vardy at Emirates Stadium.
Vardy’s 24 Premier League goals inspired Leicester City to a sensational title triumph in 2015-16 and the 29-year-old is widely reported to be the subject of a bid from Arsenal that meets a buy-out clause in the extended deal he penned in February.
Giroud struck 16 times for the Gunners in the league and hit a brace as France concluded their Euro 2016 preparations with a 3-0 win over Scotland on Saturday.
The former Montpellier frontman – who starred in a 2011-12 Ligue 1 title success that was echoed by Leicester’s underdog story – suggested he could form an effective partnership with Vardy, while being happy to accept competition for places under manager Arsene Wenger.
“I have been told that Jamie wants to join us and it’s very good news for us,” Giroud told Sky Sports News.
“I think we can be complimentary and that’s all I can say. He’s a fantastic player, so it’s good news for us.
“As I have said in the past, I am happy with competition. We have always had fantastic strikers at Arsenal and I want the best for this club. Hopefully he is going to help us win this title.”
Giroud acknowledged Danny Welbeck’s long-term knee injury will force Wenger into the transfer market and revealed a move for Vardy might not be the limit of the manager’s ambitions.
“With Welbs injured unfortunately the boss wanted to sign at least one or two strikers, so I expected a top striker,” he added.
“I think it will benefit the club and hopefully [Vardy] is going to score a lot of goals like he has done with Leicester.”
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