Olivier Giroud’s “revitalising” by Milan, the president of the Serie A club, has contributed to France’s most recent attempt to win the World Cup, according to Paolo Scaroni.
After defeating England 2-1 on Saturday to advance to the semifinal matchup with Morocco, France is still on track to become the first team to successfully defend the championship since Brazil in 1962.
Giroud scored the game-winning goal for the defending champions against England in the quarterfinal. This was Giroud’s fourth goal in Qatar 2022; only teammate Kylian Mbappe (five) has more goals.
For club side Milan this season, the 36-year-old has also been in fine form, directly contributing to 14 goals (nine goals and five assists) in 19 games.
Since joining AC Milan at the beginning of last season, he has scored 23 goals in 57 appearances across all competitions, which is also more than any other Milan player during that time.
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Scaroni said France should be grateful to Milan as Giroud keeps proving on the greatest platform that age is only a number.
“He’s doing very, very well. I think France’s qualification [to the semi-finals] is due to him a lot,” Rossoneri chief Scaroni told Sky Sport Italia.
“We at Milan have ‘revitalised’ him a bit. I don’t know if I can say it, but I have the impression with us he has found new motivation that he has transferred to the national team.
“Let’s say that we too have played a small role in the success achieved so far by France”.
Giroud surpassed Thierry Henry as his nation’s all-time leading scorer with his goal in the last-16 victory over Poland after scoring twice in France’s opening group game against Australia.
The former Arsenal player, who is one goal away from being the oldest player to score five goals at a single World Cup, might break another record when France plays Morocco in the semifinal.
Theo Hernandez, a defender who has appeared in four games, is another Milan player on France’s World Cup roster in addition to Giroud.
