Arsenal man lands on his feet and offers great value to score last

Olivier Giroud has been forced to sit and watch much of his Arsenal side’s successful opening to this campaign through either injuries or suspensions. But now fully fit and raring to go, he offers great value to bag the last goal of the game tomorrow away at Sunderland.

Although 24 hours ago that may not have been the case, with Arsene Wenger tending to opt for Alexis Sanchez in the starting line-up and summer signing Lucas Perez on the bench for much of the season so far.

However, the Spanish striker picked up an ankle injury earlier in the week against Reading in the EFL Cup, meaning there’s a clear pathway for his French teammate to break into Wenger’s first-team plans in the coming weeks.

Giroud’s style has been brought into question in recent months, with many questioning where exactly he fits into this new-look Gunners side.

But in the defence of the 30-year-old, it’s also been clear on several occasions this season that something is missing in the middle. With every cross that Alex Iwobi and Theo Walcott have put in the box which has been easily cleared by opposing defenders, there’s an argument that the big man’s aerial threat is still very much needed.

While punters should avoid the 10/3 on the striker opening the scoring, they should look at him grabbing the last goal of the day at the same price. It’s more likely he’ll be brought on as an impact substitute later on in the game, with Wenger seemingly unwilling to move Sanchez from his current central role.

Giroud is yet to start a Premier League game for the Gunners this season, and has so far only registered a mere 51 minutes of top-flight football.

But after missing several games with a toe injury, he made his comeback in the week, replacing Perez – who faces up to eight weeks out on the sidelines.

And he just loves a goal against the Black Cats, netting four times against them in the past four seasons.

Quite simply, Giroud has to prove his worth, and a goal this weekend would certainly go a long way towards doing just that.

It’s 2/5 for the Gunners to get back to winning ways in the league this weekend, while 11/8 says he nets in an Arsenal win.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing