‘I saw myself in him’ – Strasbourg’s Joaquín Panichelli names Olivier Giroud as his model

RC Strasbourg Alsace centre-forward Joaquín Panichelli (23) has revealed that Olivier Giroud (39) was his idol growing up.

Panichelli has hit the ground running at Strasbourg. The Argentine joined over the summer from Alavés and he has 10 goals in 21 games in all competitions, including nine in Ligue 1. Panichelli, who made his debut for Argentina in November, is a physical striker, valuable in build-up, but also prolific in the box.

Panichelli also names Benzema and Kane

It is reminiscent of a certain Giroud, who Panichelli has now cited as his model. “I have always said that I really like Giroud. I have often said that I watched him a lot with the France national team and I followed him closely when he was in England with Arsenal, too,” he told UEFA in an exclusive interview. 

The RCSA Striker continued, “I saw myself in him. I always saw in Giroud a centre-forward with a big presence in the box, capable of also bringing something on a technical level, too. He wasn’t just a goalscorer. When he came deep, he helped the play, too. He has always been one of my main models, as well as Karim Benzema and now Harry Kane.”

RCSA forward swaps shirts with Giroud

Panichelli had the opportunity to meet Giroud earlier this season when Le Racing faced the Frenchman’s current club, Lille OSC. The Argentina international revealed that he swapped shirts with France’s all-time record goalscorer. “It was incredible because, as I said, he is a model for me, someone that I admired. To be able to exchange shirts, from No.9 to No.9, was really special,” he added.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle