Inter Milan ‘preparing’ €5m offer for Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud — report

While the Olivier Giroud-to-Inter Milan trail has gone cold in recent weeks, after the 33-year-old signed a one-year contract extension with Chelsea, the Nerazzurri are still in need of a (backup) striker and that could lead them back to the World Cup-winner once again.

AS Roma’s Edin Dzeko is another option — classic Conte! — but according to Milan-based outlet Il Giorno (via Sempre Inter), Inter are “preparing” a bid of around €4-5 million for Giroud. They don’t want to spend too much on a deputy to Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez, and Giroud would make perfect financial and footballing sense.

Previous Inter advances had been questionable in terms of the finances, but apparently now they’re willing to offer proper wages — just about matching, in annual terms, the transfer fee they’re willing to pay — and thus believe that the veteran striker would be enticed to work with Antonio Conte once again.

Of course, the fact that Giroud has become a bit of a mainstay at Chelsea recently will not help their cause. The big man has started three of our four Premier League matches since the restart, scoring twice, and has become an integral part of the team’s efforts to finish in the top four.

And while Timo Werner’s incoming for next season, he isn’t a target man like Giroud, whose skillset remains fairly unique in the squad. Giroud is getting plenty of game-time these days, which should bode well for his plans to make the France squad for Euro 2021 2020 and give him little reason to actually leave just to also be a backup elsewhere.