Olivier Giroud has revealed that he actually agreed his new Arsenal deal before the Euros even though it was only announced in January – six months later.

“The extension was planned for several months,” Giroud told RMC last week. “Before the Euro already. 

“It took time but we got there. 

“This coincides with a somewhat tricky period for me. But it does not change anything because I have had some very good moments with Arsenal. 

“And I want to extend the adventure with this club that brought me a lot. I feel that today, I can still achieve beautiful things. “

Arsenal only announced the deal in January when they also revealed Laurent Koscielny had signed a new deal too. They’d registered his on 16 December, 2016 – almost exactly one month before they told anyone except the FA about it.

Francis Coquelin was also included in the announcement which came in the second week of January.  His deal takes him until 2021, keeping him at the club until he’s 29.Headdesk