Giroud hails Arsenal's stronger mentality

Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud believes Arsenal's stronger mentality this season can see them push for a first Premier League title in over 10 years.

The 29-year-old made his first league start since the end of August in Arsenal's 2-1 win over Everton on Saturday.

Giroud scored his fifth league goal of the season in the win, which sees Arsene Wenger's men level on points with table-toppers Manchester City.

The France international hailed Arsenal's stronger mentality and leadership this season as they continue to win big games.

"I think we are stronger mentally this year," Giroud said. "We are all fighting for each other. We have a great togetherness and we want to achieve big things all together.

"We are showing a lot of leadership, we have team meetings and we all want to contribute and bring qualities to the big matches.

"We are all looking in the same direction and we know we need to be 100 per cent in every game. If someone is a bit tired then someone else will battle and fight for each other. That’s the mentality we need to show through the season.

"If we carry on like that then we will be difficult to beat, especially with our efficiency. I don't want to look too far forward because we need to keep it up and carry on this momentum. 

"It's only the 10th game in the league so we’ve got 28 to go, so it’s a bit early."

He added: "We also want to qualify for the [knockout stages of the] Champions League so we’ve got big games to come so let’s see if we can keep it up."