Chelsea are confident that striker Olivier Giroud will not look to leave the club in January after the Frenchman's recent return to the team.
Having spent a large part of last season on the fringes, Giroud again struggled for minutes this year and was tipped to leave to avoid losing his place in the French national team, but a recent return of seven goals in his last seven games has seen Giroud fly back up the pecking order once again.
Chelsea are sympathetic of Giroud's situation and have been said to be prepared to let him leave if he wishes, but The Telegraph claim that neither Chelsea nor Giroud are expecting that to happen in January.
The 34-year-old, who is France's starting striker, has made it clear that he needs regular minutes at club level as he plans on leading his country out at next summer's European Championships, and manager Frank Lampard is thought to be confident that he can provide those minutes.
Giroud has started Chelsea's last three league games and has risen to the top of his side's scoring charts, which will likely keep him in the starting lineup for the foreseeable future.
Both Lampard and Giroud are well aware that the squad will need to be rotated, however, and Giroud has no problem with the idea of being rested in favour of Tammy Abraham or Timo Werner - just as long as he gets enough minutes to showcase his skills as well.
His situation could change if Giroud falls back out of favour before the end of the January window though, and there would likely be no shortage of interest in a player who has proven he can score goals at every level of the game.
Antonio Conte's Inter are often linked, while the low price tag that comes with Giroud's age and expiring contract would attract plenty of other suitors if he was to hit the market.
However, as it stands, Giroud is happy with his situation at Chelsea and is simply focused on scoring goals to justify his spot in both the Chelsea and France starting lineups.
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Source : 90min