The Chelsea star is Virgil van Dijk’s toughest opponent ever, saying, “He always scored against me.”
The striker Olivier Giroud, a former player for Chelsea and Arsenal, has been chosen by Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk as his hardest opponent. He acknowledges that the 37-year-old “always manages to score” against him.
Despite winning the Champions League, World Cup, and Euros during an incredible career that has seen him surpass Thierry Henry to become France’s all-time top goalscorer, Giroud is regarded by many as one of the most underappreciated players of his generation.
Van Dijk, who rated Giroud as the most formidable forward he has ever faced in an interview with France Football, is well aware of Giroud’s skill. “Olivier Giroud. He stated, according to GFFN, “Every time you think you’ve got him, that you’ve got him well marked, but he always manages to score in one way or another: with his head, his foot, or his knee.”
“He’s frequently scored against me.” In addition, Van Dijk mentioned Gabriel Jesus, Sergio Aguero, and Erling Haaland as three additional extremely difficult strikers to stop, saying, “They all make your matches very difficult.”
Van Dijk has previously referred to Giroud as one of his most formidable opponents. Van Dijk called Giroud his “bogeyman” during an interview with former Manchester United captain Gary Neville for The Overlap in November 2022.
The Dutchman remarked, “I always felt like I got him, but somehow, he always managed to score.” He consistently scored goals for Arsenal, Chelsea, or France.
“You scored again?’ I asked him after we won the league, 5-3 [against Chelsea], when he scored a sloppy goal—I believe it went against the crossbar and knocked him down—when we were up 3-0 or something.
Thus, in my opinion, he is the one who works against me in addition to being a bothersome individual. I’ve played against a lot of amazing strikers, like [Lionel] Messi, Aguero, and Haaland, who is tough because he has it all. However, Giroud is my nemesis because he is so obnoxious!
In their 14 meetings, Giroud and Van Dijk have combined for six goals from the forward in those contests. And since France and the Netherlands were placed in the same group for Euro 2024, it appears like the two will face off once more.
Van Dijk is the team’s current captain, and Giroud has stated that he plans to step down from international football following the competition. Last year, he said to RMC Sport, “If we win, I’ll bow out.” If we don’t make it to the finish, it will most likely also be the case. I’m savouring every second of it.
