Olivier Giroud, Italian champion with AC Milan: "I couldn't dream of better"

Colin Abgrall 9:00 p.m., May 27, 2022

INTERVIEW

AC Milan had been waiting for this for eleven years.

For his part, it had been ten years since Olivier Giroud had won a national championship, since Montpellier in 2012. For Europe 1, the 35-year-old from Grenoble looks back on the Italian champion's draw, on what he means for the Lombard club but also for him and his teammates, many of whom speak French.

A fascinating interview with one of the great figures of French football.

On the title of champion: "It's only happiness"

"Ten years after Montpellier (champion of France in 2012), it's only happiness. A great story, especially since AC Milan had been waiting for it for eleven years. The celebration lived up to expectations, during all these years, tifosi."

On his place in the history of AC Milan: "We are far from the very big names in Milan"

"To be measured, there have been very, very great players who have passed through AC Milan. But it is a source of pride to have contributed to the building on this 2022 Scudetto, eleven years after our elders at the alongside guys like Ibrahimovic, it's great. There are still incredible moments. We had a great season in L1, we are rewarded for all our efforts and yes, we are going down in the history of Milan. to finish the job well, to write our own history. Today, we have done it and we are entering the legend of the club. We are still far from the very big names in Milan, but it is good to to be associated with all these great players."

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On the importance of this title of Italian champion: "We are all very proud"

"I think you really realize the impact it had in Milan and in Italy on the open top bus. You see these hundreds of thousands of Milanese tifosi who have been waiting for this for a while. We are all very proud of to return to AC Milan, which is at the top. It was a hard struggle until the end and you realize that you are stepping into a very big club when you see all this passion around you and the class that reigns in this historic club. We had a lot of great messages from former legends. For my part, I was lucky to have "Sheva" (Andriy Shevchenko) who also congratulated me. are things that warm the heart."

On the French of AC Milan: "The Milanese locker room has a French accent"

"Everything was not written when we arrived with Mike (Maignan) this year. The objective was to qualify for the Champions League, to return to the top of the rankings. The objective was not necessarily at the very beginning of the season to win a Scudetto. We became aware of our qualities and especially of our possibility of managing to hold the dragee high at Inter Milan.

It is certain that the Milanese locker room has a strong French accent if I may say so, with all the French.

There are also other players who speak French, like Franck Kessié, Ismael Bennacer, Ballo-Touré.

There are other French, like Bakayoko.

A lot of us speak French, so it's true that there really is this slightly French side, as there was at Arsenal at the time.

We are lucky to have spent a large part of the season with four French players in this team and it is a source of pride for us."

On his season: "I couldn't have dreamed of better, really"

"It was an important decision after nine years spent in England, in the Premier League, to leave this championship and find a challenge that could please me, convince me to continue winning. It's true that the Italians like to remember that I almost signed for several clubs in Italy before coming to Milan. But I told them that fate wanted me to sign here and it's going like a dream. To be there and fully take part in this beautiful story, it's It's huge. It's true that for me, it's another challenge that I needed and which, in addition, is punctuated by a Scudetto. I couldn't have dreamed of better, clearly."

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Does he still want to compete in the World Cup in Qatar?

: "My last competition"

"Yes, of course. It would be a lie to say that I don't want to play a third World Cup, certainly my last competition. I will be 36 by then. And if I am still competitive with my club , yes, I would hope to continue to help the France team. Now, we are not there yet. There are still many months that will pass until then. I will take advantage of my holidays and savoring this title with my club. And then we'll see what happens."

On Kylian Mbappé: "It's good for France"

"It's good for France. It's good for the French championship, it's good for PSG. It's his choice, you have to respect it. I know it makes a lot of noise in France, in Spain. If he made this choice, it is sure that he is serene, he is at peace. So good for him. He is happy in Paris and I hope that he will continue to evolve at this level -the."

On his favorite between Real Madrid and Liverpool: "I'm a very bad forecaster"

"I think that with what Real Madrid demonstrated in the matches against PSG, then Chelsea then Manchester City, beyond their potential, their qualities on the pitch, they showed an extraordinary team spirit, of combativeness, of resilience. They have reversed situations that were a little doomed to failure, which were unexpected. They have extraordinary mental resources. I imagine that if they still have this success and this abnegation, they will have an advantage. Liverpool, they are playing their third Champions League final in five years. They are a very big team and are used to these meetings, so it will be a very close fight. But I don't have a favorite. . I'm a very bad predictor."