The North London club are desperate to raise funds so that they complete the signing of Dortmund star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
It is thought that Arsene Wenger is desperate to bring in some revenue to help fund the transfer of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund, the club’s number one target to replace Alexis Sanchez.
Arsenal have already had £45million and £50million bids rejected from Dortmund for Aubameyang, with the German giants holding out for £60million for the 27-year-old Gabon international.
Chelsea have stepped up their interest in Giroud after their deal for Edin Dzeko, which looked promising last week, fell through.
Three-time FA Cup winner, Giroud, has netted 105 goals in 252 appearances for the Gunners and would provide a worthy back up for Alvaro Morata at Stamford Bridge.
Conte has been chasing the signature of a striker for the entire window, with Michy Batshuayi the only other real strike option at the club, who has ironically been attracting interest from the likes of Borussia Dortmund himself.
It appears that each of the proposed moves are all dependent on each other; should Chelsea match Arsenal’s price tag for Giroud, the Gunners will be able to fund their transfer for Aubameyang, while Chelsea will be happy to allow Batshuayi leave for Dortmund having signed a suitable backup to Morata.
According to the Sun, Arsene Wenger said on the situation: “I have a constant dialogue with Giroud and he can only leave if someone else comes in.
“We have sold Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott this month so we would be losing too many players if Giroud goes with no-one coming in.
“He’s an important player here who everyone has a high respect for and I want him to stay.”
Only time will tell whether each club captures their hoped for forward with only a couple of days left if the January window.
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