Few players benefit more from the mastery of Mesut Ozil than Olivier Giroud, so perhaps it’s unsurprising that the Frenchman says he has never doubted the German’s quality, despite the criticism often directed at his teammate.

Ozil was in majestic form as the Gunners routed Huddersfield 5-0 at the Emirates, assisting Giroud and Alexis and grabbing a goal of his own, all within three second half minutes.

The performance earned the midfielder a second man-of-the-match award in quick succession after he’d also impressed against Sp*rs.

“He makes the best choice most of the time,” Giroud purred after the game.

“He knows when he has to pass the ball or to shoot and when you are in a good position you always think he thinks about the assist before scoring, even if he scored tonight.

“I am very happy for him. He is our playmaker and is a key player.

“No, [I] never [doubt him],” he added. “You cannot be at the top level all the time.

“Sometimes people expect the best from you every single game because you are a top player. I can understand that. But we never had any doubts about his quality, that is for sure. He is a top player and we need him.”

16 out of Ozil's 59 assists have been for Giroud. 14 of 47 in the Premier League. — Orbinho (@Orbinho) November 30, 2017

For the most part, Giroud has played his Premier League minutes this season as a substitute with Arsene Wenger choosing to divide his squad in two to tackle domestic and Europa League fixtures.

Asked whether he thinks it’s time for some of the ‘second’ string to get more action in the higher profile matches, he responded:

“Yes, but at the moment the Premier League team is doing well. We have the chance to have two good teams because we have got a good squad and everyone tries to step up and give his best for the team.

“We are enjoying playing together in Europe but obviously we all want to play in the Premier League as well, so when the boss wants to put us on the pitch we try to give our best and bring our small cog to the big machine.”

In the absence of Alex Lacazette, who picked up a groin injury, Giroud could well feature on Saturday against Manchester United.