Arsene Wenger
Wenger has dispatched his scout to keep an eye on Giroud. REUTERS

Arsenal recruiter Gilles Grimandi has confirmed that the Gunners are currently keeping an eye on Olivier Giroud, with the 25 year old currently impressing for Ligue 1 outfit Montpellier.

Giroud has scored 15 times in 20 appearances for the French side so far this season, and as a result, is drawing attention from clubs around Europe.

Newcastle has been linked with a possible move for the hitman, but the Toon signed Papiss Demba Cisse in the January transfer window to fill the gap left by Andy Carroll in the north eastern club's front line.

And now, while Grimandi insists that Arsenal are monitoring a large group of players around the world, he has confirmed that Giroud is one of them.

"We look at a lot of interesting players, and we are following Giroud," he told Le 10 Sport.

"We're following his progress, it's impossible not to look at the way he's progressed in the last two years.

"That's one of the players that we're currently looking at, but there's also between 20-30 other players from Europe and South America that we're keeping an eye on."

Grimandi believes that Giroud has the potential to play for a big club, with the Arsenal scout adding: "Now we must try to assess the scope for improvement. I think he has the potential for the best clubs in Europe."

But Arsenal won't get the star on the cheap, with Montpellier president Louis Nicollin insisting that €16 million is the minimum price a club will pay for their prized possession.

"I think Giroud is worth twice that [of Nolan Roux], so around €16 million," he told the French paper. "If he leaves for around 10 million, I can tell you that we will face anger from the supporters. 15 million is really the minimum price, even if there is a crisis."

While Arsenal currently have Thierry Henry on loan, Marouane Chamakh has hinted that his future with the Gunners is far from sure if he continues to get limited playing time. That being said, the north London club could be in the market for a striker come summer.

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