Critics didn't affect me- Giroud

Olivier Giroud insists he does not get affected despite
splitting opinion amongst Arsenal supporters and feels there
will always be "haters" to cope with.

The striker has scored 18 goals for Arsenal in all
competitions this term but some of the club's fans remain
unconvinced he can lead them to their first Premier League
title in over a decade.

Despite this, the France international – who is targeting a
30-goal campaign – is not losing any sleep over negative
comments.

"I don’t question myself about that," Giroud said according to
the Mirror. "I try so hard to give my best for the team.

"I want to give everything to always improve myself, that’s
what I have been doing this year and hopefully I will reach
my targets, my number of goals, to help this team to win the
title.

"That is the main thing for me. After that, you will always
have haters and people who don’t like you, but that doesn’t
matter to me. I am not going to lose any sleep over it or
anything like that."

Arsenal sit level with Leicester City at the summit of the
Premier League after collecting 44 points from 22 matches
and Giroud is expecting a tight battle as the London club
look to win a first title since 2004.

"I would like to reach 20 goals in the Premier League, that
would be nice and if I can help the team to reach our aims
then I would be pleased with that," continued the 29-year-
old.

"For me, it would be nice if I could reach between 25 and 30
in all the competitions.

"It is going to be tight until the end. It could even be that
goal difference makes the difference.

"Confrontations with the top teams will be decisive so we
need to be efficient, focused and show a lot of solidarity."

Arsenal host rivals Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium on
Sunday, aiming to continue a four-game undefeated run in
the league.