Olivier Giroud News

The positive response from United fans was understandable given the 70-year-old is worth an estimated £13.3bn and is known as Britain's richest man, while he is also a fan of the club.

An incredible 32 goals were scored across the weekend's nine games. As ever, Sportsmail's ALVISE CAGNAZZO has pulled out the biggest talking points from another spellbinding set of fixtures.

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has made it clear that the club are looking to bring in a No 9 following the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo.

The striker scored four goals at the World Cup, which saw him overtake Thierry Henry as France's all-time record goalscorer - and has now reportedly agreed a two-year extension with AC Milan.

Benzema was sent home after picking up a knock, but there was some speculation that he could have returned for the final after playing in a friendly for Real Madrid .

For the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Mexico and Budweiser, it has been a tournament to forget. Here Sportsmail takes a look at the winners and losers to come out of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Cult Socceroo Jason Cummings has revealed French stars Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud were so keen to snub him at the World Cup, the latter even pretended he didn't speak English. 

With 832 players included in their nation's squads for the tournament, 11 excelled themselves, with Lionel Messi stealing the spotlight with his seven goals and three assists in the tournament.

Argentina won their third World Cup crown after emerging through a pulsating encounter with France. French publication L'Equipe published their notoriously harsh player ratings in the aftermath. 

Alexi Lalas lambasted 'awful' Ousmane Dembele at halftime of the World Cup Final between France and Argentina after the winger was hauled off in the 41st minute.

France have been dealing with a virus outbreak in their squad in the build-up to the game, with Varane and Giroud previously emerging as doubts.

IAN HERBERT: Before the fire and brimstone of a match which seems to be France against the world on Sunday, Didier Deschamps' mind will stray to thoughts of loss and the bigger picture.

There are doubts over the fitness of both Raphael Varane and Olivier Giroud after the pair were not included in a team for France's closed training session on Saturday.

Arsene Wenger believes that Sunday's World Cup final could be more about unlikely heroes Olivier Giroud and Julian Alvarez rather than headliners Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe.

Evra believes Deschamps - leading his country to a second successive World Cup final - is the best France manager 'by miles', and hailed his willingness to prioritise the team over star players

IAN LADYMAN IN QATAR: It was in 2018 at the last World Cup in Russia that France coach Didier Deschamps detailed N'Golo Kante to man mark Messi when the teams met in the last sixteen.

With the rest of the squad celebrating reaching a second successive final, two of the side's defenders were summoned for anti-doping tests, with Barcelona's Kounde complaining that 'it sucks'.

Amrabat revealed he asked the AC Milan striker to 'Just stop!' following him, as the Moroccan explained that the French side resorted to man-marking in order to restrict the Atlas Lions in the tie.

Didier Deschamps' men are in the final after seeing off the tournament surprise pacakge to book a showdown with Argentina on Sunday - and it was Lloris who was given the highest praise by L'Equipe.

Karim Benzema has returned to training with Real Madrid after the injury which forced him to withdraw from the World Cup, with the Ballon d'Or winner still listed as a part of France's squad.

The 19-year-old, who was a standout for the Three Lions during the tournament, proved the national side certainly have an exciting future ahead and could be a leader in years to come.

The Three Lions were eliminated from the tournament after succumbing to two goals from Aurélien Tchouaméni and Olivier Giroud, with their captain, Harry Kane missing a penalty

It was heartbreak for the the Three Lions who were knocked out of the 2022 World Cup on Saturday night following a heartbreaking 2-1 defeat to the world champions.

Aurelien Tchouameni's goal was cancelled out by Harry Kane's effort from the spot after Saka was brought down by France's goalscorer. With England pressing for a second, France re-took the lead.

After Harry Kane had cancelled out Aurelien Tchouameni's opener, Giroud popped up in the 78th minute to head France back in front and they managed to hold on to move into the last-four.

DANNY MURPHY IN DOHA: I was in the stadium for a pulsating quarter-final and it was the best performance I've seen from the Three Lions in any tournament game.

Goals from Aurelien Tchouameni and Olivier Giroud sealed the victory for the reigning holders, in a match where there was little to separate the two teams.

GERRY COX AT THE AL BAYT STADIUM: In Kylian Mbappe , the reigning World Cup champions came into the fixture with arguably the world's best footballer at their disposal.

The England team's traditional victory moniker 'It's coming home' is getting a ribbing on social media tonight after a 2-1 defeat to France in the World Cup quarter-finals.

DOMINIC KING AT THE AL BAYT STADIUM: Southgate has a contract that runs to the summer of 2024 but he will evaluate his feelings in the coming weeks. He knows a decision is required soon.

England crashed out of the World Cup in heart-breaking circumstances as they lost 2-1 to France in the quarter-finals. GERRY COX rated all of the players.

DOMINIC KING AT THE AL BAYT STADIUM: All the hoopla had been around Kylian Mbappe, for obvious reasons, but Stephan subtly changed the direction of the conversation.

MARTIN KEOWN: Giroud did not score at the 2018 World Cup, or even manage a shot on target, despite featuring in every single game. He is still a vital cog in the French machine.

IAN LADYMAN IN DOHA: The game has a moment-of-truth feel about it. Have England really learned the lessons of failures against Croatia and then Italy in last summer's Euros final?

MICAH RICHARDS: If England beat France it would be the greatest result they've achieved on foreign soil. I would even go as far as to say it'd be the best scalp England have taken in my lifetime.

ALVISE CAGNAZZO: Below, Sportsmail runs the rule over the Serie A stars to dazzle on the biggest stage, and the flops who will have a point to prove when the league returns to action in late December.

GRAEME SOUNESS: England are a dangerous team, who have been to a World Cup semi-final and a Euros final. They're here to win the tournament, not just entertain and go home empty-handed.

As England prepare to take on France in the Quarter Final at the Al Bayt Stadium in Qatar. From glamorous models to business owners, here's how the WAGs shape up against each other.

Olivier Giroud gave a speech to the squad in Qatar after being handed a commemorative France shirt which celebrated the 52 goals he has amassed for the country.

For fans who enjoy following the soap opera of France's seemingly never-ending psychodrama, there's never any shortage of material. How have they turned it around for the World Cup?

England vs France on Saturday night will be the most-watched TV event of 2022 and make-or-break for Gareth Southgate's World Cup dreams. Here are five areas where the contest could be won.

DOMINIC KING: Kylian Mbappe was the talk of the town again as Olivier Giroud called him 'scary' and Guy Stephan, had an even more colourful choice of words.

CHRIS SUTTON: Kyle Walker could have a near-perfect game at right back and yet there will still be moments when Kylian Mbappe makes him look silly.

MATT BARLOW: Olivier Giroud is 36 and it is nearly five years since he was off-loaded by Arsenal, where supporters were fed up of his unreliability in front of goal.

Kylian Mbappe helped France shake off their first-half jitters with two superb goals to launch the defending champions into the quarter-finals with a 3-1 victory against Poland on Sunday.

Mesut Ozil has congratulated Olivier Giroud for becoming France's all-time top goalscorer after hinting he taught the Les Blues striker how to pull off his iconic chop move.

Olivier Giroud made history on Sunday by taking the title of France's all-time top goalscorer by finding the net against Poland in the last-16 at the World Cup.

Olivier Giroud says that Thierry Henry messages him every time he scores a goal, as the AC Milan striker looks set to overtake the France legend as the country's record goal-scorer

Giroud has netted 51 times for France in 115 games, the joint-highest amount alongside Thierry Henry, with the 36-year-old expected to pull ahead by the end of the World Cup this winter.

Richarlison stole the show for Brazil with a brace, Olivier Giroud edged closer to history for France and both Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham looked superb in England's 6-2 rout of Iran.

They enter Saturday's contest stuck at the foot of Group D on zero points, and know that a win over their African rivals will give them a shot of reaching the knockout stages.

Kylian Mbappe's 'fantastic' performance against Australia on Tuesday night showed that the French superstar can once again be France's talisman on the road to World Cup glory.

Australia's tactics and lack of mongrel in their humbling opening defeat by France has been criticised by Socceroos legends, who claim the Aussies 'weren't in the game' after scoring early.

France captain Hugo Lloris revealed his delight that Olivier Giroud equalled Thierry Henry's goalscoring record for France with an important double in their World Cup opener against Australia.

PLAYER RATINGS: Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud were instrumental in a fine attacking showing for Didier Deschamps' side, while Australia's lone striker Mitchell Duke struggled up front.

Australian took a shock early lead, but in the end France flexed their muscles to record a 4-1 win in Qatar at the Al Janoub Stadium. Here are the player ratings for both squads.

France kick-start their World Cup defence against Australia on Tuesday evening, but they will be without key figures such as Karim Benzema, Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kante and Christopher Nkunku.

Benzema has endured something of a disrupted season, already having been forced to miss 11 matches for club and country after enjoying the best season of his career in 2021-22.

Both Pogba and Giroud helped Les Bleus to their second title four years ago, but Pogba will miss out in Qatar after sustaining an injury early on in his summer return to Juventus.

The AC Milan striker gave Socceroos boss Graham Arnold some motivational ammunition when he confessed the Les Bleus haven't started doing their homework for Wednesday's match.

The 13th matchday of the Serie A season and the penultimate weekend of action before the World Cup break was full of excitement. ALVISE CAGNAZZO rounds up the action.

Giroud, 36, has played a key role in Deschamps' decade-long reign including starting all but one game as France marched to their second World Cup crown in my Russia four years ago.

ALVISE CAGNAZZO: Milan spent less than £865,000 to sign him from Chelsea, and Giroud is experiencing an superb final phase of his career, allowing him to become Pioli's No 1 striker.

Olivier Giroud still thinks his spot in France's squad for the Qatar World Cup is still up for grabs despite his impressive form since joining Serie A side AC Milan.

Van Dijk has come up against Giroud in Liverpool matches against Arsenal and Chelsea, as well as for Holland against France - and the striker has got the better of him more than once.

ISAAN KHAN: AC Milan have booked their place in the Champions League knockout stages after they comfortably beat RB Salzburg 4-0 at the San Siro on Wednesday.

AC Milan revived their hopes of reaching the Champions League last 16 with a 4-0 win at Dinamo Zagreb in Group E on Tuesday.

Paris Saint-Germain manager Christophe Galtier has played down criticism from Kylian Mbappe at the weekend, saying that it was merely a reaction in the heat of the moment.

The 23-year-old posted an Instagram story after his side's poor showing against Reims in Ligue 1, which ended in a drab 0-0 draw, with '#pivotgang' beneath a picture of him in action.

ALVISE CAGNAZZO: Paolo Maldini's risk in Olivier Giroud paid off. The Italy legend has frequently managed to buy exceptional players without overspending on the market.

Olivier Giroud, Ferland Mendy, Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni, Dayot Upamecano and William Saliba all received a miserable 3/10 rating for their performances.

The 23-year-old starred in France's 2-0 Nations League win over Austria on Thursday night, scoring the opener before Olivier Giroud sealed all three points with a well-taken header.

The summer signing was named in France's starting line-up for the international fixture at the Stade de France in Paris, but had to be replaced after just 23 minutes.

PSG forward Mbappe opened the scoring with another stunning goal before AC Milan star Giroud sealed the world champions' win with a header.

The Campanian side travelled to northern Italy knowing a win would see them return to the summit of Serie A and Luciano Spalletti's side produced a stunning performance to ensure they went top.

Olivier Giroud, Alexis Saelemaekers and Tommaso Pobega were on the scoresheet for the Italians, while Mislav Orsic netted for the visitors.

A penalty by striker Olivier Giroud gave 10-man AC Milan a deserved 2-1 win at Sampdoria in Serie A on Saturday, sealing their first away victory of the season.

AC MILAN 3-2 INTER MILAN: Two goals by Milan forward Rafael Leao helped the defending champions fight back from a goal down and earn a 3-2 win over local rivals Inter.

Goals by Rafael Leao and Olivier Giroud gave AC Milan a comfortable 2-0 win over Bologna at San Siro on Saturday as they moved top after their third Serie A game of the season.