Frank Lampard believes the best thing to happen to Arsenal over the summer was Olivier Giroud deciding not to leave.

Despite only making 11 Premier League starts last season, Giroud decided to stay at Arsenal this summer and fight for a place in the first team. This, Lampard claims, was massively beneficial from the Gunners’ point of view.

“Giroud came close to joining Everton, something which has made the headlines again due to Ronald Koeman getting the sack at Goodison Park and blaming missing out on the France international as a big reason why things didn’t work out this season,” Lampard wrote for his Evening Standard column.

“He gives them a different option to the other attacking players they’ve got. It is a great asset to have in your squad.

“He can be a presence, hold the ball up and bring others into play, he can help Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil and so on.

Everton were heavily linked with a move for the striker over the summer, which Giroud himself confirmed after he’d made his decision to stay put. There are rumours that they’ll return for the 31-year-old in January, while other reports insist that they won’t.

Regardless of whether the Toffees make another move for the France international, they do need a striker. They’re currently in the relegation zone having earned just eight points from 10 games and their goal difference is the second-worst in the league (-13).

They’ve only managed to net seven goals in total, two of which were against Arsenal, which don’t really count because everybody scores against Arsenal.

As Lampard says, losing out on Giroud over the summer could prove to be devastating for Ronald Koeman’s former side.

The Chelsea hero isn’t the only former player to highly rate Big Sexy, either.

Jamie Carragher recently sang Giroud’s praises, claiming that the striker is one of the most underrated players in the Premier League.

This is all despite Giroud only scoring one league goal so far this season.