Source: team_talk
Giroud: Ignore the doubters
Olivier Giroud feels Arsenal must ignore the doubters when the Gunners look to get their Champions League campaign back on track at Schalke.
The Germans recorded an impressive 2-0 win at Emirates Stadium a fortnight ago, which put them top of Group B and dented Arsenal's hopes of securing early qualification for the knockout stages.
It was a flat display by Arsene Wenger's team, who had won their opening European game in Montpellier and also beaten Olympiacos, which followed on from a first Premier League away defeat at Norwich.
Giroud, however, insists Arsenal must not let their confidence be dented by critics, who will use those below-par performances and Saturday's 2-1 defeat at Manchester United as evidence the team cannot last the distance.
"We have to continue to play through the lines, to find the solutions and to keep confident about our qualities. That is what the boss has his finger on and wants us to do, to keep playing our football," Giroud told Arsenal Player.
"Schalke may defend strongly and it might be difficult for us to break them down, but we must keep going and going, keep playing football and keep confident - we have to go forward.
"We are a team that always likes to play football, with quality passing and movement, so to just defend and not play is not Arsenal."
French striker Giroud, 26, insists Arsenal must head to Germany looking for victory rather than just aiming not to get beaten.
"We want to go to Germany with the idea of winning. We want to show our mental and technical qualities," he said.
"We go to Germany confident. I know that Schalke will consider Arsenal as a good team, so although they won the first leg, we know that they expect to play a hard game because we want to do better."
Arsenal were second best for long spells against the well-organised Germans a fortnight ago, with second-half goals from Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Ibrahim Afellay condemning the Gunners to a first home defeat in Europe for 45 matches.
Giroud, however, rejected suggestions Arsenal had not been prepared for the challenge they faced from the Bundesliga outfit.
"I don't think we underestimated Schalke in the last match, I just don't think our overall performance was good enough on the night," he said.
"Schalke are experienced in the Champions League and we had seen videos of them, and we had analysed their game and their qualities. We were not surprised by their qualities and their players.
"We must give credit to Schalke for their performance on the night, but now we know what we will be up against in Germany next week.
"We know that we have to play very well in Germany to make sure we come back home to London with some points."
Giroud now feels settled into the Arsenal side following his summer move from Montpellier, and scored his first Premier League goal at West Ham before the international break.
"I must say, I prefer English football because I have more invested in each match. You just have to be more physical and athletic in every single match," he said.
"There are no easy matches in England. You have to be ready to make contact with very hard defenders each time you go on to the pitch.
"I was ready for this challenge and I must say that I am not surprised at what I am now experiencing."
