Arsene Wenger reserved praise for Olivier Giroud as the Frenchman, making his first Premier League start of the season, delivered a knockout blow on Boxing Day with a late header to down West Bromwich Albion.

The striker, who now has six goals this season, has cut a frustrated figure on the bench in recent weeks but his efforts both in training on the pitch continue to impress the boss who praised his fighting spirit.

“He makes always a point when he comes on because he’s scored many times when he’s come on,” Wenger told his post-game press conference.

“He has qualities in our squad that are needed and that the other players have not. And he is a fighter as well, Olivier. He has a fantastic mentality.”

After returning late from EURO 2016, Giroud returned to London Colney to find Alexis Sanchez had been given the job of leading the line at the Emirates. The Chilean has thrived in the position and brought out the best in Theo Walcott reducing Giroud to a bit-part role.

Addressing the state of affairs, Wenger added: “It has been very frustrating for him [Giroud] because he didn’t always play and when he played well I didn’t always play him in the next game. But I think we have an honest relationship.

“I have a big respect for him and he knows that. He was not always playing and despite that, he kept a strong motivation level. Our job, when you’re a football player, you have to be always ready. That’s part of the job.

“When you’re selected, it’s fantastic. When you’re not selected, you have to be ready. And the players who are always ready when they get their chance, they are there.

“And the players who feel sorry for themselves, they get their chance and they give you one more reason to justify why you didn’t select them. The fighters are always ready.”

Wenger also took a moment to stress that no player has a right to a starting berth. Competition for places is already strong in the attacking positions and with Danny Welbeck due to return the boss made clear he’ll rotate his options to find the best combination to unpick opponents on a case-by-case basis.

“We are not in an administration here,” he stressed. “We are in a competition. You do not have ‘your place’, like a seat that you buy with a season ticket.

“We are competing and I think if I have only one striker, everybody says ‘What are you doing, you have only one striker?!’

“So you need two or three strikers and we have Welbeck coming back so most of the time I will have to make the decision considering the opponent we play.

“Like today, I knew it would be deep and that in the air could be a solution. So I have to make the right decisions.”